The closer the better: Supplier geographic proximity and corporate information disclosure violation

Abstract

This study examines the association between supplier geographic proximity and corporate information disclosure violation. Using panel data with 13,775 firm-year observations of listed firms in China, we find that a supplier geographically closer to a firm (geographic proximity) can suppress the firm's information disclosure violation. This relationship is more pronounced when the supplier provides more specific investments and the firm is a non-state-owned enterprise. The main finding holds after using various measures to address endogeneity, including propensity scorematching and instrumental variable method. Overall, our research suggests the supplier's governance effect on a firm’s information disclosure strategy.