Auditing standards reform in 2016 and going-concern audits

This paper examines the issuance and accuracy of going-concern audit opinions after China's auditing standards reform in 2016. We find that auditors are more likely to issue a going-concern opinion after the reform and Type II errors (retaining the false) decrease while Type I errors (discarding the true) increase. Further analyses show that the results are related to the change in GCO disclosure location in audit reports resulting from the reform. The new auditing standards strengthen the auditor's responsibility for going-concern audits and adjust the alternatives of GCO disclosure location in audit reports. In this context, auditors are increasingly willing to communicate less severe going-concern issues in the audit report. Overall, auditors are issuing more going-concern opinions after the auditing standards reform in 2016 and the change in location alternatives affects the accuracy of going-concern opinions.