“Surprise” material weakness disclosures: Effects on audit fees and audit report lags

Prior research shows that many of the companies that disclose material weaknesses in internal control (MWs) do not disclose such weaknesses in earlier quarterly 10-Q filings for the same year—i.e., the year-end MW disclosures are “surprise” disclosures. I first show, using data from 2009 to 2019, that such surprise MWs continue to be the majority of MW disclosures as late as 2019. I find that accelerated filer companies with surprise MWs pay lower fees compared to companies with no-surprise MWs; however, this finding does not hold for non-accelerated filers. I also find that there are no significant differences in the audit report lag of surprise and no-surprise MW disclosers. Thus, the lower audit fee paid by surprise MW disclosure companies may offer a possible explanation for the widespread prevalence of surprise MW disclosures. The results also highlight the importance of the external auditor in public disclosures of MWs. The findings have public policy relevance given the ongoing efforts to expand the set of companies that would be exempt from the auditor attestation of internal controls.     

中国企业的反倾销胜诉经验对应诉美国“337”调查案件的启示

加入世贸以后,针对中国企业发起的美国“337”调查案件越来越多,“337”调查已经开始取代反倾销成为中美贸易摩擦的主要表现形式并严重制约了中国优势产业向美国的出口。因此,笔者试图在深入分析“337”调查与反倾销指控之间异同点并总结中国企业反倾销胜诉经验的基础上,为中国企业如何正确应诉美国“337”调查提出相应的对策。     

我国股票市场受国内重大事件影响的实证分析——以航天板块为例

股票市场中航天版块的市场行情除受到大盘的影响之外,还与航天产业重大事件有着密切的联系.运用事件研究法分析重大航天事件对中国股票市场航天版块行情的影响可以看出:航天重大事件带来了航天板块股票市场价格在之后三个交易日内出现急剧上升或下降趋势,但影响的时间延续性较短,波动持续时间不长,股民对航天重大事件的炒作和股民"羊群效应"是航天板块在航天重大事件短期内出现短期剧烈波动的主要影响因素.     

美国对我国发起“337调查”的现状、原因以及影响

近年来,美国对外国发起"337调查"等非关税贸易壁垒,不仅给中国企业造成极大的经济损失,也破坏了公平的市场环境。从调查数量、调查的主要诉由、中国被调查的涉案行业以及中国被调查企业胜诉率分析中美"337"调查的现状,分析美国对中国发起"337"调查的原因,并归纳"337调查"对外国造成的影响。     

美国对华337调查的现状与政治经济学分析

文章以337调查为切入点,比较了337调查与其他贸易壁垒的区别,以此说明337调查的特殊性;在介绍了当前的中美337调查的现状后.又重点分析了337调查背后的政治经济学原因,认为美国对中国大陆产品频繁发动337调查的背后除了经济利益外,更为重要的是政治因素的作用.     

CFOs’ and public accountants’ perceptions of material weaknesses in internal control areas as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley act

One of the most controversial aspects of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOA) is related to Section 404, which requires management to assess the entity’s internal controls, and then its independent auditor to attest and report on management’s assessment. The auditing standard governing this requirement was promulgated by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB). Its title is Auditing Standard (AS) No. 2, An Audit of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting Performed in Conjunction with an Audit of Financial Statements [Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) (2004). An audit of internal control over financial reporting performed in conjunction with an audit of financial statements. Auditing Standard No. 2, Washington, DC: PCAOB]. AS No. 2 requires, among other things, that management must disclose any “material weaknesses” in internal controls. However, absent any guidance other than definitions from the PCAOB, management and independent auditors are left to their own judgment to define and recognize “material weakness in internal control” or “significant deficiency” while implementing AS No. 2. The research question, then, becomes to what extent, if any, are weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting consistently assessed, recognized and agreed upon by both parties? Or does their professional judgment and point of view cause different perceptions? Most of the Section 404 research has focused on the characteristics of the material weaknesses disclosed (and the capital market or other impacts of reported material weaknesses). This study, in contrast, is behavioral in context, and examines the perceptions of CFOs and CPAs as to whether they believe an internal control material weakness exists under four independent scenarios. The results indicate that the CPAs were significantly more conservative in their assessments in two of the four cases.     

现阶段我国企业频遭知识产权壁垒的原因及对策

近年来,知识产权壁垒成为继传统两反一保后的一种全新的贸易壁垒形式。近一段时间以来,我国企业出口频遭知识产权壁垒,进出口贸易受到严重影响。本文着力探寻知识产权壁垒频繁发生的原因,并在此基础上提出相应的对策建议。     

中国企业就337条款在美国国际贸易委员会的应诉策略

中国企业在美国遭受337条款诉讼的案件日渐增多,由于案件败诉结果的严重性,中国企业必须对此高度重视,并应充分了解337条款诉讼的特点以及在美国国际贸易委员会应诉策略以保护自身利益。     

新贸易保护主义下美国“337调查”发展趋势及其对中国外贸的影响

337调查作为一种新型的贸易壁垒,因其救济力度大、结案迅速、调查程序对原告有利等特点,成为美国企业在知识产权案件中频繁运用的法律手段。本文回顾了美国337调查的发展状况和趋势,探寻中国出口产品频遭337调查的原因,并为国内出口商提出一些应对策略建议。     

美国财务报告内部控制审计的最新发展及启示

本文从美国《萨班斯———奥克斯利法案》和PCAOB新审计准则出发,研究财务报告内部控制审计的:审计服务性质、审计责任主体、审计方式、评价标准等重要问题,结合我国实际情况,提出规范我国内部控制信息披露机制及开展相关的财务报告内部控制审计业务的系统建议。