Timeliness of corporate financial reporting: empirical evidence from listed companies in Bangladesh

Abstract

The aim of this study is twofold: first to determine the extent and trend of timeliness of reporting practices of the listed companies in Bangladesh and secondly to identify the factors that influenced the timeliness of reporting. The current study uses 123 companies with 861 firm year observations listed and operating from 2004 to 2010 and measures the trend of reporting lag over the year: it pays attention to the situation before and after the corporate governance code of 2006. Empirical finding indicates that sample companies need about 110 days to complete the audit process. On average, shareholders in Bangladesh had waited about 170 days to discuss the performance of their companies with the management at the AGM. Through regression analysis, the outcomes show that audit lag time is influenced by firm size and the financial condition of the company. Preliminary lag is affected by firm size, earnings, financial condition, company age, industry categories and audit opinion. Moreover, reporting lag is influenced by firm size, earnings, financial condition, audit firm size, company age and industry categories.