International Differences in the Timeliness, Conservatism, and Classification of Earnings

Abstract

In this paper, we analyze differences in the timeliness of income recognition between the U.S. and U.K. GAAP financial reporting regimes. Building on previous work in the area we focus on the links between current reported earnings and current and past changes in market value. In the light of Basu [1997] we present a formal model in which the response of reported earnings to changes in market value varies according to whether the value change is good news or bad. This model yields a number of insights with regard to the definition and measurement of earnings conservatism. We also report evidence indicating that controlling for cross-jurisdictional classification differences affects comparisons of earnings timeliness and earnings conservatism; specifically, we find that apparent differences in conservatism between the U.S. and U.K. accounting regimes are sensitive to the inclusion or exclusion of extraordinary items in U.K. accounting earnings. Recent research documents significant variation in the information content of earnings across international GAAP regimes (e.g., Alford et al. tLancaster University; tUniversity of Manchester. The research support of the Eco