Financial reporting lag during COVID-19: evidence from flash reporting in Japan

Abstract

Considering the waiver of the ‘within 45 days’ rule in Japan following the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, we conduct empirical investigations to examine the determinants of the timeliness of flash reporting and the market reactions to flash announcements during the pandemic, distinguishing between early and late filers and between the ‘waiver’ year (2020) and ‘non-waiver’ year (2021). We find that the complexity of operations and earnings news explain the observed reporting delay. We also find significant support for market reactions to flash reporting, suggesting that the waiver policy has no significant impact on the information value of flash announcements.