Audit quality and informational asymmetry: an analysis in the period before and after adoption of the international accounting standards

Abstract

This study investigates which elements of audit quality (AQ) contribute to the reduction of information asymmetry (AI) in listed companies in the period before and after IFRS adoption. Regressions with panel data were estimated to test the relationship between IA and AQ in 82 companies between 2003 and 2016. The main results are: there is a significant and negative relationship between AQ elements (BIG4, TA, ESP and CA) and IA; there is a significant and negative relationship between the control variables (COB, INT, FLOAT and NM) in relation to IA and; there is a higher relevance of the AQ in reducing the AI in the IFRS post-adoption period. The study can contribute: showing which attributes related to the AQ are associated with the information quality; providing the capital market and accounting practices regulators informational subsidies and; helping investors to improve the identification of companies’ characteristics with higher information quality.

Keywords

• qualidade informacional
• qualidade da auditoria
• assimetria de informação
• convergência internacional