Research on Influencing Factors of Key Audit Matters Disclosure in China

Abstract

Taking companies listed in both A-shares market and H-shares market from 2016 to 2018 in China as samples, this paper uses literature and empirical research method to study the impact of the characteristics of key audit matters (namely, KAM) on disclosure from both auditors and audited companies. The results show that the number of key audit matters is more related to the characteristics of audited companies rather than auditors, indicating that the size, leverage, and IPO period of the audited companies generate a significant positive correlation with the number of disclosed key audit matters. At the same time, the profitability and net operating cash flow are obliviously negative with the number. While for an accounting firm, there is only a significant correlation between the type of audit opinion, showing that the number of key audit matters disclosed with modified auditing opinion is less than those disclosed with unmodified opinion. Based on this conclusion, this paper explores the relationship between types of key audit matters disclosed and the characteristics of firms and audited entities. The results show that the auditee level factors still have a greater impact on the type of key audit matters to make a contribution to the accounting standard construction in China.