Time: March 11th 2015( Wednesday)19:30-21:00

Location: Room 501, Jiageng 2

Moderator:Wuji, Assistant Professor of IFAS

Topic:Analyst Private Information Acquisition and Stock Price Synchronicity--A Regulatory Perspective from China

Presenter: Haiyan Jiang, Senior lecturerin Accounting, Massey University, New Zealand

Abstract:

This study investigates whether analysts’ private information acquisitioninfluences the extent to which firm-specific information is capitalized intostock prices, as measured by stock price synchronicity in Chinese stockmarkets. We also study the moderating effect of the restrictions on selectivedisclosures imposed by the CSRC Directive 40 on the relationship between analyst private information and synchronicity.

We find thatsynchronicity correlates negatively with analyst private information content,and also moves in a direction opposite to analyst private informationacquisition over our sample period. This finding supports the information roleof analysts’ private information seeking activities. We uncover that analystprivate information acquisition reduces substantially after the 2007 regulation, which partially supports the effectiveness of Directive 40 in itsobjective of ‘levelling the information playing field’. However, thesynchronicity-reducing effect of analyst private information acquisition isattenuated after Directive 40, implying an impaired firm-specific informationflow attributable to the restriction on selective disclosures.

Personal Profile:

Haiyan Jiang got her PhD and Bachelor of Commercedegree in accounting from Lincoln University in New Zealand, and Bachelor ofEconomics major in Accounting from Zhengzhou Institute of Aeronautical IndustryManagement. She has publications in Journal ofInternational Accounting Research,Journalof International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, and so on.