Title: Developments in non-mandatory disclosures in annual reports of companies: a case study

Authors: Umesh Sharma; Roxanne Low; Howard Davey

Addresses: Department of Accounting, Waikato Management School, University of Waikato, PB 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand ' Waikato Management School, University of Waikato, PB 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand ' Department of Accounting, Waikato Management School, University of Waikato, PB 3105, Hamilton 3240, New Zealand

Abstract: The paper investigates the extent of non-mandatory disclosure of information (NMD) in the annual reports of the companies listed on the South Pacific Stock Exchange (SPSE) in Fiji and whether NMD by these companies has changed over time. The empirical data was gathered from the years 2008 to 2010 to provide a picture of the change in the level and extent of NMD. All companies showed some degree of NMD, and on average this demonstrates an increasing trend. A large variation still exists between the level and extent of the NMD and the different listed companies. It was established that disclosure is impacted by what happens in the reporting period, and can explain why one period may have greater disclosure than another. The paper aims to extend earlier work of Sharma and Davey (2013) on the extent of NMD in a Fijian context. The study has shown that corporate governance code issued in 2009 by Capital Market Development Authority has influenced the level of NMD.

Keywords: non-mandatory disclosure; NMD; emerging economies; Fiji; legitimacy theory; annual reports; corporate governance; financial reporting.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEA.2013.059882

International Journal of Economics and Accounting, 2013 Vol.4 No.4, pp.297 - 326

Published online: 29 Apr 2014 *

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