European Market Reaction to Audit Reforms

Abstract

This paper investigates European stock market reaction to events associated with the proposed EU audit reforms that were ultimately implemented in 2016. These include, inter alia, mandatory audit firm rotation, prohibition of non-audit services, and fee caps. We find that investors react positively to the proposals, lifting aggregate market value by approximately €108,630 million. In cross-sectional analysis at both country and firm level, we find that these net benefits arise from the prohibition of non-audit services and the placing of a cap on total fees charged by the auditor. Furthermore, we find investors in firms with low earnings quality appear to perceive the greatest benefits from the proposed reforms.     

The Determinants and Effects of Clients Following Audit Partners Who Switch Audit Firms

Abstract

We examine the determinants of clients’ decision to follow departing partners to new audit firms and the effect of this decision on the likelihood of financial restatements. Using Taiwanese audit partner turnover data from 1984 to 2010, we find that clients are more likely to follow departing partners when the partners have more clients, longer tenure, and when both lead and concurring partners leave simultaneously. By contrast, clients are more likely to stay with their incumbent audit firms when the firms are one of the Big Four or when only the concurring partners leave. The extended partner tenure due to clients following departing partners, however, does not enhance audit quality. In fact, clients that stay at the incumbent firm experience a significant decrease in the probability of financial restatements in the first year after the audit partners leave, but clients that follow do not.     

Assimilation of immigrants in Spain: A longitudinal analysis

In this paper we use a new panel dataset to analyse the earnings assimilation of immigrants in Spain. We show that immigrants reduce the wage gap relative to natives by 15 pp during the first 5–6 years after arrival, but the earnings differential does not disappear completely. Earnings assimilation is not homogeneous across different nationalities, being faster for South-American and European (new accession countries to EU) immigrants compared to Africans. Finally, we show that human capital gains within the firm as opposed to higher mobility contribute the most to their assimilation process.     

The impact of litigation risk on the association between audit quality and auditor size: Evidence from China

We examine whether audit quality varies across different sizes of CPA firms under high or low auditor‐specific litigation risk exposure. We measure audit quality by the issuance of modified audit opinions and the audit fees charged to clients, and we use the organizational form of CPA firms as the proxy for auditors’ litigation risk exposure, where a partnership (limited liability) CPA firm represents a high (low) litigation risk exposure. Built on Choi, Kim, Liu, and Simunic's (2008) theoretical framework, we hypothesize that the litigation risk exposure of CPA firm moderates the association between auditor size and audit quality. Our results show that when the auditor's liability is capped (i.e., registered as a limited liability form of CPA firm), larger size CPA firms are associated with higher audit quality when compared to smaller size CPA firms. However, this positive association between auditor size and audit quality disappears for audit firms that are subject to high litigation risk exposures (i.e., registered as a partnership form of CPA firm). Our research provides new insights on the impact of auditor‐specific litigation risks on the relation between audit quality and auditor size. In particular, we show that only when auditor‐specific litigation risk is limited, do large CPA firms appear to perform higher quality audits than small CPA firms.     

The Empirical Research on Auditor Independence and Mandatory Auditor Rotation

Using, the method of correlation coefficient, this paper discusses the empirical relationship between audit tenure and audit opinion in annual reports in China A-share market and period of mandatory rotation of auditor. The research finds that the negative correlation between auditor tenure and non-standard unqualified audit opinion is statistically significant, and auditor tenure might impair his/her independence. To enhance auditor independence and improve audit quality, it is necessary to rotate mandatory auditor. The results also fred that consecutive auditing years should not exceed 5 years when the existing auditor has been the auditor of listed company, and mandatory rotation of auditor adapts to the rotation of CPA firms in charge of a client.     

诉讼风险如何影响事务所低价揽客经济后果?——来自公司盈余管理的经验证据

近年来,会计师事务所低价揽客行为频发,其经济后果受到广泛关注。在此背景下,基于诉讼风险视角,实证检验事务所低价揽客行为对企业盈余管理的影响。研究发现,存在低价揽客行为的事务所审计的客户公司有着更高程度的盈余管理,但这种关系主要由非十大所的低价揽客行为所驱动;当诉讼风险增加时,事务所低价揽客与公司盈余管理之间的正向关系有所减弱,诉讼风险的这种调节作用主要存在于非十大所审计的企业以及进行正向盈余管理的企业中。这些结果表明,与大所相比,小所的低价揽客行为在加剧企业盈余管理方面产生的经济后果更为严重,而较高的诉讼风险可缓解这一行为带来的不良后果。因此,抑制企业盈余管理,应有针对性地规范小所的审计定价行为,加大其低价揽客行为的诉讼成本。     

独立审计质量影响因素研究:一个文献综述

审计质量是近年国内外引人瞩目的研究领域。本文系统回顾了有关审计质量影响因素的研究现状与发展动态,从事务所规模、审计任期、行业专长、法律责任、公司治理等方面进行了梳理和综述,对该领域的未来研究热点进行了展望,为进一步研究审计质量提供一些思路。     

审计师轮换类别与审计结果——基于“关系”的视角

审计师强制轮换制度能够从制度上对审计师独立性给予一定程度的保证,而社会关系的存在会对审计师的独立性产生影响,但同时也能够增加前后任审计师工作交接的效率。以2007—2019年签字审计师轮换为样本研究发现,同一事务所内签字审计师的变更会使得后任审计师出具清洁审计意见的可能性提升,后任审计师审计当年发生财务重述的可能性较低,且可操纵性应计利润较低。但是,后任审计师获取的审计费用并没有显著降低。与不同事务所之间的签字审计师轮换相比,同一事务所审计师轮换情况下,由于更易进行信息共享与沟通,后任审计师的审计质量更高,且与前任审计师审计质量相比,后任审计师审计质量有所提升。     

Sustainability reporting quality and post‐audit financial reporting quality: Empirical evidence from the UK

This study examines whether firms that appear to exhibit high sustainability reporting quality are less likely to engage in earnings management activities, thereby delivering financial information that is more transparent and reliable than that delivered by firms that do not produce high‐quality sustainability reports. I also investigate whether the association between sustainability reporting quality and post‐audit financial reporting quality is conditional on audit effort. Analysis of data drawn from FTSE 350 companies covering 2007 to 2018 indicates that firms that produce high‐quality sustainability reports are significantly and negatively associated with earnings management metrics. More importantly, this association is moderated by audit effort, measured by audit fees, suggesting that sustainability reporting quality reflects factors considered by auditors in their audit risk assessment practices. These results remain robust after several sensitivity analyses. I conclude that firms that devote more resources to producing high‐quality sustainability reports are likely to demonstrate an overall commitment to quality that alleviates auditors' concerns about the opportunistic use of sustainability reporting and reduces business risk, thereby reducing the effort auditors expend to verify financial reports.     

审计师工作量压力与盈余质量——基于门槛模型的研究

采用2012-2016年我国上市公司及其签字审计师为样本,引入门槛回归模型,实证分析不同事务所组织机制支持下审计师个人工作量压力如何影响审计行为决策及盈余质量。研究结果表明:会计师事务所行业专长存在门槛效应,行业专长水平越高,事务所组织支持力度越大,审计师工作量压力对公司盈余质量的负面影响越小;会计师事务所综合评价存在门槛效应,事务所综合评价水平越低,事务所组织支持力度越小,审计师工作量压力对公司盈余质量的负面影响越大;会计师事务所人力资本存在门槛效应,人力资本质量越高,审计师工作效率越高,审计师工作量压力对公司盈余质量的负面影响越小。     

Ownership concentration,modified audit opinion,and auditor switch: New evidence and method

This study investigates: 1) how does the ownership structure of listed firms influence the relation between their earnings management behavior and auditor opinion; 2) how does the ownership structure influence the relation between the auditor opinion and auditor switch. We find that the level of listed firms’ earnings management is positively associated with the propensity of being issued modified audit opinions (MAOs) by auditors when their ownership structure is highly concentrated. However, the issuance of MAOs is not associated with the auditor switch under such condition. On the contrary, a high level of earnings management is not associated with the propensity of being issued MAOs when firms’ ownership structure is less concentrated. Further, the issuance of MAOs may increase the likelihood of auditor switch. The empirical findings suggest that auditors may cater for the preferences of the real controller of listed firms when issuing audit opinions. Moreover, the “auditor opinion shopping” behavior by listed firms is also affected by listed firms’ ownership structure.     

Experience of Audit Committee Members and Audit Quality

Abstract

We investigate whether the experience of audit committee members is associated with audit quality. In order to comprehensively analyse the experience of audit committee members, we include audit committee member tenure, age and multiple-directorships in our analysis. Using observations from 2001 to 2012, we undertake analysis on 13,155 firm-year observations and find that all our proxies of audit committee member experience are positively associated with audit fees. A range of additional tests, including using discretionary accruals as an alternative measure of audit quality and differences-in-differences analysis, support our main findings and our results consequently make a number of contributions to both the literature and policy making. One possible policy contribution is that regulators may wish to consider audit committee characteristics representing experience when framing recommendations to improve audit quality and thereby, financial reporting by firms.     

Auditor Independence,Current and Future NAS Fees and Audit Quality: Were European Regulators Right?

Abstract

European Union adopted the Regulation (EU) No 537/2014, which in practice prohibits the joint provision of audit and most types of non-audit services (NAS). Regulators presume that NAS fees weaken auditor independence and, as a result, impair audit quality. As the evidence at the European level does not support this view, the question of whether the new regulation will enhance auditor independence remains open. We examine the association between future NAS fees and audit quality by distinguishing among tax, audit-related and other services. We base the analysis on a sample of Spanish listed companies for the period between 2005 and 2016, finding a consistent negative association between future other NAS fees and audit quality. This suggests that the expectation of future purchases of this type of NAS may impair auditor independence. Conversely, for tax and audit-related services results are not significant. Taken together, results suggest that European regulators should seek for further evidence before banning NAS, as some of them may in fact enhance audit quality.     

物流费用审核业务在欧美发展及在我国的机遇和挑战

通过分析物流费用审核业务在中国和欧美等发达国家开展情况,提出了在中国进行物流费用审核业务的可行性以及面临的挑战。研究过程中,大量地了解了欧美发达国家的物流费用审核外包状况及行业趋势,结合了笔者多年在某跨国企业从事物流费用核付业务的丰富工作经验,以及多年对国内企业物流费用核付业务的了解。分析了物流费用审核业务在国内开展的可行性以及可能面临的机遇和挑战。     

盈余管理，审计风险与非对称审计收费——基于2008年中国沪市上市公司制造业的证据

本文选取2008年制造业的601家上市公司作为研究样本,从审计师所承担的审计风险的角度出发,鉴于上市公司不同方向的盈余管理行为封审计收费的影响作出了研究。结果表明,尽管存在非对称诉讼风险,由于中国特有的监管制度,审计收费与向上的盈余管理行为正相关,与向下的盈余管理行为也正相关。同时发现,在中国的股票市场上,看似处于高速增长阶段的上市公司,其向上的盈余管理行为与审计费用的正相关关系并不显着。     

Audit Market Response to PCAOB Censures of US Big 4 Firms

Abstract

Subsequent to the first-ever Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) censure of a US Big 4 firm (Deloitte) in December 2007, there were two other PCAOB US Big 4 firm censures as of 2016 year-end. We examine whether these two post-2007 PCAOB censures of US Big 4 firms conveyed new information to the audit market. For both censures, we find little or no evidence of any change in the factual audit quality of the censured firm over a three-year window surrounding the censure. Our findings suggest that the quality control deficiencies (identified during inspection of specific audit engagements) that triggered the PCAOB censure were isolated occurrences rather than systemic to the firm at large, i.e., the censures do not imply an impairment in the US Big 4 firm's overall factual audit quality. We also find that the negative response of investors and audit committees documented in prior research for the 2007 Deloitte censure disappeared for the later US Big 4 firm censures. Given that the PCAOB inspects (and can censure) non-US auditors who audit US-listed foreign companies, our findings are of potential interest to regulators, investors and audit committees outside the US.     

低质量审计是审计师个人特质导致的特例吗？——基于“污点”签字注册会计师的研究

在签字注册会计师层面研究低质量审计的发生原因时发现:审计失败被发现前,与同所未受罚签字注册会计师相比,受到证监会处罚的签字注册会计师的审计质量持续较低;部分受罚签字注册会计师因事务所合并而被动进入质量控制较好的环境中,其审计质量较合并前有显著改善。这说明在相同质量控制体系下,低质量审计是由审计师个人特质导致的特例;而良好的质量控制有助于抑制"污点"签字注册会计师个人特质对审计质量的不利影响。     

审计市场集中度一定能提高审计质量吗？——来自我国证券审计市场的新发现

市场集中度与审计质量相关性问题一直颇受学术界关注,在收集整理1993年至2009年上市公司年报审计数据并进行描述性统计分析基础上,通过构建模型对我国审计市场集中度与审计质量的关系进行实证检验的结果表明,我国审计市场仍然处于低集中状态,不过正在逐步提高.与前人研究结论不同,作为审计质量替代指标的非标准意见比率与审计市场集中度并没有正的线性相关关系,而是整体上呈现出相反发展趋势,高市场集中度并不一定带来高审计质量,同时新准则的实施并未引起非标准意见比率明显上升.     

审计质量对资本市场定价偏差抑制效应研究

以2007—2017年A股上市公司为样本,探讨审计质量与资本市场定价偏差的关系。研究发现：审计质量对资本市场定价偏差有显著的抑制作用,审计质量越高,资本市场定价偏差越小;其作用机制为降低盈余管理和增加投资者关注。进一步研究表明,该抑制效应主要体现在股票价格高估和流动性较差的公司中。研究结果从资本市场定价效率的角度丰富了审计质量价值的文献,并对资本市场监管具有一定的意义。