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The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent of segmental reporting disclosure and its value relevance to a sample of Qatari and Jordanian listed companies following the implementation review of the International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 8. This was the first standard to be subjected to a post-implementation review. Annual reports are initially analyzed to investigate the level of segmental information that was published by companies in these two countries.

Using the Ohlson (1995) model, the study employs regression analysis to test the hypotheses relating to the value relevance of the segmental disclosures uncovered. In addition, one-way ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis tests are used to investigate any variation in segmental reporting among sectors.

The findings indicate that the amount of segmental information disclosed by the sample firms differs across sectors. Moreover, the segmental information provided (including the number of segments and the amounts of disclosure) is value relevant and can explain the variations in firms’ share prices.

The results of the current investigation have implications for policy makers, including the International Accounting Standards Board, as well as for accounting regulators in Jordan and Qatar. They suggest that the segmental disclosures supplied under IFRS 8 are value relevant for equity prices in a developing country context. Compliance with IFRS 8 should thus be monitored to ensure that all firms provide the segmental disclosures that they are meant to supply under the terms of the standard.

This paper is one of the few to provide empirical evidence on the role of segmental reporting following the post-implementation review that was conducted for IFRS 8.

Drawing upon agency theory, this study aims to assess the value relevance (VR) of accounting information released by non-financial firms listed on the Kuwait stock exchange for the period of 2015-2018. Also, the influence of institutional ownership level and other explanatory variables, namely, book value per share, earnings per share, growth in assets and changes in financial leverage on share prices is examined.

To test the hypotheses, the Ohlson (1995) model is extended. This study uses panel data analysis and applies appropriate statistical techniques to measure empirical relationships.

The results show that the VR of accounting information released by the Kuwaiti non-financial listed firms varies over the period of 2015-2018. Book value and earnings have significant and positive effects on share prices. In recent years, the VR of book value information has been growing, while that of earnings information has been declining. Institutional ownership level has a significant and positive influence on the VR of accounting information released by the Kuwaiti non-financial listed firms. The findings confirm a positive power, signalling growth in assets regarding the share prices. However, no significant relationship between changes in financial leverage and share prices is found.

The findings of the study provide evidence of the linkage between VR and institutional ownership level, which promotes the understanding of the influence of institutional investors on a firm’s market value. Empirical evidence from Kuwait will have international implications and can serve as a guide for accounting researchers studying other emerging markets. Capital market regulators can provide guidelines in the form of information characteristics and elements of financial statements that need improvement. Finally, the findings assist non-financial listed firms to enhance the quality of accounting information by identifying the strengths and weaknesses in their financial reports.

This study extends the previous literature by investigating a relatively new set of data in more depth than that has been examined by prior research, which focusses on the relationship between accounting information and the firm’s market value.

This study aims to provide an exhaustive review and analysis of accounting research conducted on the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

The study combines bibliometric and content analysis techniques to analyze 811 Scopus peer-reviewed research articles from 1998 to 2023, written by 1,195 authors. It quantifies the annual scientific production, examines the main publication venues, visualizes collaboration and various bibliometric networks, identifies thematic research categories and provides a roadmap for future research directions.

The findings reveal phenomenal progress in accounting research on the GCC countries, evidenced by an increased number of peer-reviewed articles, scholars and countries involved. Likewise, a “homophily impact” exists among the productive authors, meaning they share a disciplinary or thematic similarity in their research interests. Besides, there is an apparent weakness in the research collaboration between GCC countries and their global counterparts. Furthermore, four main broad thematic categories of accounting research on the GCC countries were identified: (1) corporate governance, (2) Islamic banks, (3) corporate social responsibility and (4) intellectual capital. Building on the findings, we formulated a comprehensive agenda for guiding future research directions.

This study is the first to thoroughly evaluate accounting research within the GCC countries, utilizing a large sample of 811 peer-reviewed research papers indexed in Scopus from 1998 to 2023. The results are helpful, offer valuable insights and pave the way for future research avenues.

The main aim of this paper is to investigate Financial Instruments (FIs) disclosures provided by Jordanian listed companies under International Financial Reporting Standard No. 7 (IFRS 7) as compared to those supplied under International Accounting Standards (IAS) 30/32.

A sample of 82 Jordanian listed companies is used in this monograph. A disclosure index checklist was constructed to measure FI information provided by the sample companies.

The study finds that a larger number of Jordanian listed companies provided a greater level of FI-related information after IFRS 7 was implemented. Specifically, the sample firms provided 47 per cent of the disclosure index items after implementing IFRS 7 as compared to 30 per cent under IAS 30/32. In addition, the industrial analysis of FI disclosure revealed that the highest level of disclosure was provided by firms in the banking sector over the two periods; these companies disclosed 44 per cent of FI-related items pre-IFRS 7 and 69 per cent of items post-IFRS 7. Moreover, the industrial analysis of FI disclosure pre-and post-implementation of IFRS 7 revealed specific aspects of usefulness. In particular, some components of FI disclosure (Balance Sheet and Fair Value) showed no significant differences within and across sectors post the implementation of IFRS 7, suggesting that the new standard may have enhanced the comparability of such information.

The results provide timely findings to Jordanian authorities who may be trying to evaluate the current reforms adopted; stringent enforcement mechanisms are needed to ensure full compliance with accounting standards. However, the present investigation was conducted on a single nation (Jordan); the circumstances in Jordan gave rise to the importance of the current study. A cross-country comparative analysis is needed in order to examine the application of IFRS 7 in a developing country context.

The results of the current study have a number of implications for policymakers. First, they provide a great deal of insight for the International Accounting Standards Board about the relevance of its standards to countries outside the Western context. In addition, the findings provide valuable insights for policymakers in Jordan who are concerned about the implications of mandatory disclosures.

The analysis of FI disclosure in developing countries in general, and in Jordan in particular has been overlooked by the extant literature and therefore this study is the first of its kind to examine this research issue for a sample of Jordanian firms.

Based on the institutional theory, the purpose of this paper is to examine institutional factors that affect the development of accounting practices in Jordan.

The current study surveys the perceptions of 306 participants and 20 interviewees.

First, the early formation of accounting practices in Jordan has been affected by the legacy of Ottoman Empire’s and the British Colony’s accounting systems. Second, the results indicate that government of Jordan (regulatory frameworks), pressures from international donors and large economic organizations (politico-economic factors), education and training/development (cultural inputs), and the efforts to attract foreign investments and getting access into the international fund and trade (economic factors) have been influential influences in the development of accounting practices and the adoption of International Accounting Standards/International Financial Reporting Standards (IAS/IFRS) in Jordan. Finally, the findings reveal that “Secrecy” construct (a culture input) has been a problematic in the implementation of IAS/IFRS.

The current study provides policy implications for the Jordanian policy makers and for other developing countries that are working hard to improve the quality of financial reporting of their business entities. Finally, the authors suggest some great opportunities for future research.

First, this paper contributes to Jordan’s policy developments including fundamental strategies in terms of attracting foreign investments to expand the economy and the international and regional trade. Second, it fills a gap in the international accounting research by empirically assessing how institutional factors affect the development of accounting practices in emerging country such as Jordan.

The purpose of this paper is to: examine the value relevance of financial instruments disclosure (FID) provided by Jordanian listed companies under International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS 7) as compared to that supplied under IAS 30/32; provide evidence about the value relevance of high vs low levels of FID; and investigate which components of FI-related information are more value relevant.

A sample of 70 Jordanian listed companies is used in this monograph. A disclosure index checklist was constructed to measure FI information provided by the sample companies. In addition, a valuation model is employed to test the association between FID and market value.

Although evidence is provided that FI information was value relevant over the two periods of investigation, the information supplied after the implementation of IFRS 7 was more strongly associated with market values. An analysis of the sub-components of FID reveals that the details about balance sheet, fair value and risk information matter when valuing equity. Overall, the results indicate that investors value FI-related information when making their equity pricing decisions. The result suggests that compliance with IFRS mandatory disclosure requirements does produce relevant financial statements.

The results of the current study have a number of implications for policy makers. First, they provide a great deal of insight for the IASB about the relevance of its standards to countries outside the western context. In addition, the findings provide valuable insights for policy makers in Jordan who are concerned about the implications of mandatory disclosures.

The analysis of FID in developing countries in general, and in Jordan in particular, has been overlooked by the extant literature and therefore this study is the first of its kind to examine this research issue for a sample of Jordanian firms.

Earnings quality is of great concern to corporate stakeholders, including capital providers in international markets with widely varying regulatory pedigrees and ownership patterns. This paper aims to examine the association between the cost of equity capital and earnings quality, contextualised via tests that incorporate the potential for moderating effects around institutional settings. The analysis focuses on and compares evidence relating to (common law) UK/US firms and (civil law) German firms over the period 2005–2018 and seeks to identify whether, given institutional dissimilarities, significant differences exist between the two settings.

First, the authors undertake a review of the extant literature on the link between earnings quality and the cost of capital. Second, using a sample of 948 listed companies from the USA, the UK and Germany over the period 2005 to 2018, the authors estimate four implied cost of equity capital proxies. The relationship between companies’ cost of equity capital and their earnings quality is then investigated.

Consistent with theoretical reasoning and prior empirical analyses, the authors find a statistically negative association between earnings quality, evidenced by information relating to accruals and the cost of equity capital. However, when they extend the analysis by investigating the combined effect of institutional ownership and earnings quality on financing cost, the impact – while negative overall – is found to vary across legal backdrops.

This paper uses institutional ownership as a mediating variable in the association between earnings quality and the cost of equity capital, but this is not intended to suggest that other measures may be of relevance here and additional research might usefully expand the analysis to incorporate other forms of ownership including state and foreign bases. Second, and suggestive of another avenue for developing the work presented in the study, the authors have used accrual measures of earnings quality.

The results are shown to provide potentially important insights for policymakers, creditors and investors about the consequences of earnings quality variability. The results should be of interest to firms seeking to reduce their financing costs and retain financial viability in the wake of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The reported findings extends the single-country results of Eliwa et al. (2016) for the UK firms and Francis et al. (2005) for the USA, whereby both reported that the cost of equity capital is negatively associated with earnings quality attributes. Second, in a further increment to the extant literature (particularly Francis et al., 2005 and Eliwa et al., 2016), the authors find the effect of institutional ownership to be influential, with a significantly positive impact on the association between earnings quality and the cost of equity capital, suggesting in turn that institutional ownership can improve firms’ ability to secure cheaper funding by virtue of robust monitoring. While this result holds for the whole sample (the USA, the UK and Germany), country-level analysis shows that the result holds only for the common law countries (the UK and the USA) and not for Germany, consistent with the notion that extant legal systems are a determining factor in this context. This novel finding points to a role for institutional investors in watching and improving the quality of financial reports that are valued by the market in its price formation activity.