Purpose Prior literature has revealed three key earnings benchmarks: earnings level; earnings change; and analysts’ expectations. The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, the authors seek to establish which earnings benchmark induces the largest extent of earnings management. Second, the...

Purpose: This study aims to explore the audit quality supplied by the Big 4, large indigenous Chinese (LIC) and five largest second-tier international network (Tier 2) audit firms in China during the second phase of their audit market development. Design/methodology/approach: Ordinary least...

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between corporate governance and earnings opacity in China. Design/methodology/approach: Two corporate governance mechanisms form the basis of the analysis: 1) the board of directors and 2) the external audit function. OLS...