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A survey of Internet Financial Reporting in Qatar

A survey of Internet Financial Reporting in Qatar Research reveals that there is little empirical evidence of the internet financial reporting IFR phenomenon in the Gulf Cooperation Council GCC region. This paper attempts to fill some of the gap in our knowledge of IFR practices in Qatar. Specifically, the purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it documents the extent and variety of practices of IFR by the 43 companies listed on the Doha Securities Market DSM. Second, it seeks to examine the key factors that affect the engagement of IFR by the DSMlisted companies. The findings of the descriptive analysis indicate that 39 of the 43 listed companies operate websites, of which only 28 provide financial information on their websites. Of these 28 companies, 25 provide a complete set of financial statements including footnotes and the auditors report for twoyear periods or more. The results also show that the majority of the Qatari companies 25 out of 28 use the PDF format to disclose their financial information, and few companies choose to use the internet to provide additional financial highlights, in the form of HTML and MS PowerPoint. The empirical analysis also finds a significant relationship between the engagement of IFR and company size, profitability, and ownership structure. The overall conclusion is that there is a seemingly limited use of the internet for IFR purpose and that IFR is still at an embryonic stage in Qatar, with many opportunities and challenges for all stakeholder parties in corporate reporting. The applicability and implications of the underlying research findings should be of value to the accounting regulators and standardsetters in the region, particularly the Gulf Cooperation Council Accounting and Auditing Organization GCCAAO. The overall findings justify, in the very least, a wider and more detailed study by GCCAAO of important issues such as the major audit implications of IFR and the state of regulation on IFR in the GCC region. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Journal of Economic and Administrative Sciences Emerald Publishing

A survey of Internet Financial Reporting in Qatar

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Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
Copyright © Emerald Group Publishing Limited
ISSN
1026-4116
DOI
10.1108/10264116200900001
Publisher site
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Abstract

Research reveals that there is little empirical evidence of the internet financial reporting IFR phenomenon in the Gulf Cooperation Council GCC region. This paper attempts to fill some of the gap in our knowledge of IFR practices in Qatar. Specifically, the purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it documents the extent and variety of practices of IFR by the 43 companies listed on the Doha Securities Market DSM. Second, it seeks to examine the key factors that affect the engagement of IFR by the DSMlisted companies. The findings of the descriptive analysis indicate that 39 of the 43 listed companies operate websites, of which only 28 provide financial information on their websites. Of these 28 companies, 25 provide a complete set of financial statements including footnotes and the auditors report for twoyear periods or more. The results also show that the majority of the Qatari companies 25 out of 28 use the PDF format to disclose their financial information, and few companies choose to use the internet to provide additional financial highlights, in the form of HTML and MS PowerPoint. The empirical analysis also finds a significant relationship between the engagement of IFR and company size, profitability, and ownership structure. The overall conclusion is that there is a seemingly limited use of the internet for IFR purpose and that IFR is still at an embryonic stage in Qatar, with many opportunities and challenges for all stakeholder parties in corporate reporting. The applicability and implications of the underlying research findings should be of value to the accounting regulators and standardsetters in the region, particularly the Gulf Cooperation Council Accounting and Auditing Organization GCCAAO. The overall findings justify, in the very least, a wider and more detailed study by GCCAAO of important issues such as the major audit implications of IFR and the state of regulation on IFR in the GCC region.

Journal

Journal of Economic and Administrative Sciences – Emerald Publishing

Published: Jun 1, 2009

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