Future-oriented disclosure and corporate value: the role of an emerging economy corporate governance

• Published in: Journal of applied accounting research 2023-01, Vol.24 (1), p.25-46
• Main Authors: Benameur, Kameleddine, Hassanein, Ahmed, Azzam, Mohsen Ebied A.Y., Elzahar, Hany
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Accountability; Annual reports; Asymmetry; Audits; Boards of directors; Capital markets; Chairman of the board; Chief executive officers; Committees; Corporate governance; Disclosure; Economic development; Hypotheses; Industrialized nations; Investments; Reporting requirements; Social networks; Transparency
• ISSN: 0967-5426; 1758-8855
• DOI: 10.1108/JAAR-01-2021-0002

PurposeKuwait has taken significant steps to reform its corporate governance (CG) by introducing the New Company Law (NCL) in 2013. This study investigates how this reform of CG mechanisms affects the disclosure of future-oriented information. Likewise, it explores how CG mechanisms affect the informativeness of this disclosure.Design/methodology/approachThe sample comprises the nonfinancial firms listed on the Boursa Kuwait from 2014 to 2018. The study uses an automated textual analysis to measure the level of future-oriented disclosure in the annual reports of these firms. The informativeness of disclosure is proxied by firm value at three months of the date of the annual report.FindingsThe study finds that Kuwaiti firms with larger board sizes and substantial ownership by institutional investors are less likely to disseminate future-oriented information. Conversely, firms with more independent directors and larger audit committees are more inclined to provide future-oriented disclosure. Furthermore, the disclosure of future-oriented information carries contents that enhance investors' valuations of Kuwaiti firms, especially in firms with fewer institutional ownership and more prominent audit committees.Research limitations/implicationsIt focuses on management decisions to disclose information in the annual reports. Examining other channels of disseminating information, such as social media disclosure, provides avenues for future research.Practical implicationsPolicy setters in Kuwait should consider the importance of some CG mechanisms to improve the transparency of Kuwaiti firms, as suggested by the NCL. Likewise, investors should rely on such specific CG mechanisms to build their prospects about the firm's value.Originality/valueApart from developed countries, the current study is the first evidence on how CG mechanisms could affect the informativeness of future-oriented disclosure in a developing economy. It is also the first to investigate the new CG mechanism introduced by Kuwait NCL in 2013.