Lessons from ＂Audit Storm＂ in China

The phenomenon of ＂Audit Storm＂ in China shows that transparency in government audit has been improved and increasing attention from the public has been paid to it, as government auditing and the mass media in China make joint effort to become a powerful source of supervision of government financial administration. Lessons drawn from Audit Storm show that more need to be done to systematically ensure public accountability in China, including improving the independence of China National Audit Office （CANO）, strengthening the manning of Chinese National People＇s Congress （NPC） and Ministry of Finance （MoF）, improving NPC and MoF joint cooperation with CNAO, insisting on more transparency in public funds allocation and management, the introduction of an effective responsibility system, and so on.     

土地督察信息公开的风险影响评价——以专项督察制度为例

研究目的:以专项督察为例,剖析国家土地督察信息公开所带来的社会风险,并借此为优化其公开方式提供借鉴。研究方法:对《国家土地总督察公告》中专项督察公开的案例进行梳理和分析,运用logistic模型分别从土地管理官员和群众的角度分析导致案件公开风险的因素。研究结果:土地督察信息公开的及时性、多样性、互动性和广泛性有待加强,土地专项督察中重大土地违法信息公开的需求与风险并存,且信息公开风险受到公开时间、内容和方式的影响。研究结论:要充分掌握信息公开主动权,加大投入进行土地督察信息公开建设,信息公开前的保密审查机制以及公开后的舆情监测机制亟待建立。     

THE SUBSTANCE OF ACCOUNTING FOR PUBLIC‐PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS

This article evaluates Public‐Private Partnerships (PPP) accounting practice and the related financial accounting and reporting requirements. Governments across the world are seeking to access private finance to improve public infrastructure. Accounting for PPPs has encountered many difficulties, one of which is the practice by which PPPs are not accounted for as fixed assets on the balance sheet of either the public sector client or the private sector operator. Accounting for PPPs has grown in importance at a time of transition from national Generally Accepted Accounting Practice (GAAP) to International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Under UK GAAP, both client and operator accounting adopt the reasoning – familiar from leasing standards – of the allocation of risks and rewards between the parties to determine the party which should recognize the fixed asset on its balance sheet. The gap in IFRS with regard to operator accounting has been filled by the interpretation IFRIC 12 on service concession agreements: this moves the reasoning from risks and rewards to control, familiar from consolidation standards. The UK Treasury and the International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) have required/proposed the adoption of the mirror‐image treatment of IFRIC 12. In most, but not all, cases, control will be assessed to rest with the client, which will recognize property, plant and equipment, and not with the operator, which will recognize either a financial asset or an intangible asset on the basis of an assessment of which party bears the majority of risks and rewards. Under both UK GAAP and IFRS, accounting policy choices are strongly influenced by, for the client, governmental control frameworks, and for the operator, by the implications for the profile of distributable profits and for taxation. An important public policy issue is that the national accounts, which for European Union member states must comply with European System of Accounts 1995, will remain on a risks and rewards basis. It is these numbers that will be used in assessments of macro‐fiscal policy and fiscal risks, notwithstanding that the Eurostat version of risks and rewards is even more open to manipulation than were the national financial reporting standards.     

以阳光财务遏制贪腐丑行

面对信息不对称带来的种种困扰,信息虚假造成的各种恶果,信息屏蔽引发的官员贪腐,笔者越发认为实现信息对称对重塑公司治理结构,实现社会公平正义,遏制官员贪腐贿赂具有重要的实现意义。论文以官员贪腐为研究起点,分析成因,谋划措施,采用比较研究法,明确提出让财政晒晒太阳,实行阳光财务,是治理贪腐和贿赂的强力措施。     

Transparency in the interbank market and the volume of bank intermediated loans

In the present paper we study the equilibrium interaction through which the interbank market is related to the public lending and borrowing market. It turns out that this interaction is affected by the transparency in the interbank market. Interbank market transparency is modeled by means of more informative signals about future interbank rates. We find that more transparency might increase or decrease the volume of bank intermediated loans in the public market. In particular, the impact of more transparency on the volume of loans depends on the curvature of the marginal cost function of the banking firm. Furthermore, we find that expected profits of the bank are higher when the interbank market is more transparent.     

Uncertainty and central bank transparency: A non-Bayesian approach

We use a non-Bayesian approach to uncertainty, where “ambiguity” is taken into account, in order to analyze the issue of central bank transparency, and we underline that the use of such an approach may greatly change the results. We reconsider a specific argument against transparency found in the literature. We show that, in the presence of ambiguity, the argument can become a case in favor of transparency, which seems more in accordance with some stylized facts. Reduced Knightian uncertainty associated with increased transparency can contribute to making transparency beneficial.     

关键审计事项披露与企业会计稳健性——基于准自然实验和文本分析的证据

关键审计事项披露对增强财务报告可信度、提高信息透明度以及提升企业会计信息质量具有重要意义。基于2014—2020年我国上市公司样本数据,采用多期双重差分法和文本分析方法,实证检验了关键审计事项披露对企业会计稳健性的影响。研究发现：关键审计事项披露提升了企业会计稳健性,且在非国有企业和净资产收益率小于6%的企业中正向影响更大;关键审计事项披露数量越多,关键审计事项结论性评述积极程度和关键审计事项审计应对力度越高,披露资产减值类和损益类关键审计事项对企业会计稳健性的提升越显著;进一步分析发现,这一效应在企业信息透明度较低以及审计监督效应较强的企业中更为明显;作用机制检验表明,关键审计事项披露通过提高市场感知的审计质量和报表盈余的审计质量提升了企业会计稳健性。     

政府透明度的经济学视角

本文从经济学的角度,对政府透明度与民营机构透明度进行类比,论述了政府透明度的涵义以及对政府有效制约的原理、意义,尝试探讨妨碍政府提高透明度的根本原因,并提出了政府和官员主导、民众利用媒体舆论推动来提高政府透明度的思路.     

Optimal vs satisfactory transparency: The impact of global macroeconomic fluctuations on corporate competitiveness

Being able to separate temporary global macroeconomic influences – caused by fluctuations in exchange rates, interest rates and inflation – from intrinsic performance – related to a superior product, production process or management – is crucial to assessing the development of a firm’s competiveness. Against that background, this paper analyzes institutions’ role in making firms supply outside shareholders with relevant information corresponding to satisfactory transparency from the shareholder perspective. Based on a sample of the 100 largest public European firms, it is found that no firm provided information to a level deemed satisfactory by the outside shareholder. One explanation may be that optimal transparency for the firm does not equal satisfactory transparency for the outside shareholder. However, the implementation of IFRS/IAS 1 in the EU as of 2005 and a company’s international cross-listing activities exhibit associations with a better supply of information and a narrowing of the gap. Shareholders in the Anglo-Saxon corporate governance system are provided with more relevant information than those in other corporate governance systems. The paper adds to the literature on the role of institutions in international corporate governance, with a particular focus on information asymmetries in an international business context.     

Governmental Financial Reporting Reforms and Relationship Marketing: An Analysis of International Public Sector Accounting Standards Implementation

This study aims to investigate the effect of the implementation of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSASs) on corruption. This study utilizes a primary data approach based on survey design. The study uses a sample of 255 accountants and auditors in the Nigerian public sector. Multivariate regression analysis r is performed on data gathered from the field of study. The study finds that the implementation of IPSASs significantly affects transparency and accountability favorably at .05 level of significance. The analysis of the result based on the doctrine of Oli–eclectic paradigm, agency and culture theories indicates that improved transparency and accountability in the public sector will enhance relationship marketing.