Analysis of trends and determinants of the «Big 4» companies in the global audit market

Abstract

The object of research is the «Big 4» – a group of the largest international auditing companies, which includes: Deloitte (Great Britain), PricewaterhouseCoopers (USA), Ernst&Young (Great Britain) and KPMG (Netherlands). The target market of the «Big Four» companies is mainly large companies operating in various sectors of the world economy and regions of the world. Over the years, the «Big 4» companies have been leading the global audit services market and growing their revenues. Companies offer audit, tax and consulting services to their clients. This study is aimed at determining and evaluating the influence of the state of the world economy on the performance of companies and identifying the key endogenous determinants of the sustainability of their development. A comparative analysis of the dynamics of growth rates of global gross domestic product and aggregate global income of the «Big 4» companies during 2009–2022 showed their similarity, but not identity. The annual growth rates of the «Big 4» aggregate income mostly exceeded similar indicators of the global gross domestic product. The conducted correlation-regression analysis of the dependence of the aggregate revenues of the «Big 4» companies on the economic situation in the world confirmed the significant influence of the state of the world economy on the performance of the «Big 4» and made it possible to determine the level of this influence. A number of endogenous determinants contributing to the sustainable development of a group of companies in an unstable economic environment have been identified: the target segment (the largest international and national companies), broad industry diversification and geographical coverage of client companies, timely updating of the range of services in accordance with demand, effective international marketing strategies, use innovative technologies, highly professional management and company personnel.