title: Voluntary Disclosure of Listed Chinese Companies~2008-2012: An Empirical Study

authors: Qin, Tao

subjects: Voluntary Disclosure

abstract: The Chinese stock exchanges are an integral part of Chinese and global economy having a combined market capitalization of 3697 billion USD at end of year 2012.  Due to their size and economic impact it is important that they maintain growth and stability.  Writers have maintained that voluntary corporate disclosure can help to achieve growth and stability thus the aim of this research is to examine recent Chinese listed companies’ voluntary disclosure practice. 

The purpose of this study is to investigate voluntary disclosure level of top 50 listed Chinese companies on Shanghai Stock Exchange during 2008-2012 period.

This study primarily utilizes a quantitative approach.  The author constructs a Voluntary Disclosure Index (VDI) based on legislative/regulatory consideration, investor demand, investor sophistication and previous studies.  This VDI score is then used to measure companies’ voluntary disclosure level.

The results of this study indicate that the overall voluntary disclosure level did not increase during 2008-2012, rather it dropped.  Some interesting findings about disclosure level and individual disclosure item scores in certain disclosure categories stood out; for example, nearly all companies detached their CSR report or sustainability report from their annual reports in 2010, resulted a sharp decline in voluntary disclosure level in certain related disclosure category.  Further there was little employment information disclosed particularly of note are the areas of minority and gender, and little forward looking corporate focused financial information as opposed to general economic expectations was disclosed. 

By using more recent data and considering the changes in China’s corporate disclosure regulation system in recent years, this study addresses certain gaps from previous Chinese studies.  This study also explores some regulatory loopholes in China’s disclosure regulation system and certain insufficiencies in investors’ education, thus this study can be of value to policy makers.  Overall it is hoped that this study can lead to greater engagement between Chinese corporations and investors particularly in the area of voluntary disclosure.

text: Voluntary Disclosure of Listed Chinese Companies~2008-2012: An Empirical Study The Chinese stock exchanges are an integral part of Chinese and global economy having a combined market capitalization of 3697 billion USD at end of year 2012.  Due to their size and economic impact it is important that they maintain growth and stability.  Writers have maintained that voluntary corporate disclosure can help to achieve growth and stability thus the aim of this research is to examine recent Chinese listed companies’ voluntary disclosure practice. 

The purpose of this study is to investigate voluntary disclosure level of top 50 listed Chinese companies on Shanghai Stock Exchange during 2008-2012 period.

This study primarily utilizes a quantitative approach.  The author constructs a Voluntary Disclosure Index (VDI) based on legislative/regulatory consideration, investor demand, investor sophistication and previous studies.  This VDI score is then used to measure companies’ voluntary disclosure level.

The results of this study indicate that the overall voluntary disclosure level did not increase during 2008-2012, rather it dropped.  Some interesting findings about disclosure level and individual disclosure item scores in certain disclosure categories stood out; for example, nearly all companies detached their CSR report or sustainability report from their annual reports in 2010, resulted a sharp decline in voluntary disclosure level in certain related disclosure category.  Further there was little employment information disclosed particularly of note are the areas of minority and gender, and little forward looking corporate focused financial information as opposed to general economic expectations was disclosed. 

By using more recent data and considering the changes in China’s corporate disclosure regulation system in recent years, this study addresses certain gaps from previous Chinese studies.  This study also explores some regulatory loopholes in China’s disclosure regulation system and certain insufficiencies in investors’ education, thus this study can be of value to policy makers.  Overall it is hoped that this study can lead to greater engagement between Chinese corporations and investors particularly in the area of voluntary disclosure.

year: 2014

title: Global patterns of insect herbivory in gap and understorey environments, and their implications for woody plant carbon storage

authors: Piper, Frida I.

subjects: shade tolerance

abstract: Insect herbivory is thought to favour carbon allocation to storage in juveniles of shade-tolerant trees. This argument assumes that insect herbivory in the understorey is sufficiently intense as to select for storage; however, understoreys might be less attractive to insect herbivores than canopy gaps, because of low resource availability and - at temperate latitudes - low temperatures. Although empirical studies show that shade-tolerant species in tropical forests do allocate more photosynthate to storage than their light-demanding associates, the same pattern has not been consistently observed in temperate forests. Does this reflect a latitudinal trend in the relative activity of insect herbivory in gap versus understorey environments? To date there has been no global review of the effect of light environment on insect herbivory in forests. We postulated that if temperature is the primary factor limiting insect herbivory, the effect of gaps on rates of insect herbivory should be more evident in temperate than in tropical forests; due to low growing season temperatures in the oceanic temperate forests of the Southern Hemisphere, the effect of gaps on insect herbivory rates should in turn be stronger there than in the more continental temperate climates of the Northern Hemisphere. We examined global patterns of insect herbivory in gaps versus understories through meta-analysis of 87 conspecific comparisons of leaf damage in contrasting light environments. Overall, insect herbivory in gaps was significantly higher than in the understorey; insect herbivory was 50% higher in gaps than in understoreys of tropical forests but did not differ significantly between gaps and understories in temperate forests of either hemisphere. Results are consistent with the idea that low resource availability - and not temperature - limits insect herbivore activity in forest understoreys, especially in the tropics, and suggest the selective influence of insect herbivory on late-successional tree species may have been over-estimated.

text: Global patterns of insect herbivory in gap and understorey environments, and their implications for woody plant carbon storage Insect herbivory is thought to favour carbon allocation to storage in juveniles of shade-tolerant trees. This argument assumes that insect herbivory in the understorey is sufficiently intense as to select for storage; however, understoreys might be less attractive to insect herbivores than canopy gaps, because of low resource availability and - at temperate latitudes - low temperatures. Although empirical studies show that shade-tolerant species in tropical forests do allocate more photosynthate to storage than their light-demanding associates, the same pattern has not been consistently observed in temperate forests. Does this reflect a latitudinal trend in the relative activity of insect herbivory in gap versus understorey environments? To date there has been no global review of the effect of light environment on insect herbivory in forests. We postulated that if temperature is the primary factor limiting insect herbivory, the effect of gaps on rates of insect herbivory should be more evident in temperate than in tropical forests; due to low growing season temperatures in the oceanic temperate forests of the Southern Hemisphere, the effect of gaps on insect herbivory rates should in turn be stronger there than in the more continental temperate climates of the Northern Hemisphere. We examined global patterns of insect herbivory in gaps versus understories through meta-analysis of 87 conspecific comparisons of leaf damage in contrasting light environments. Overall, insect herbivory in gaps was significantly higher than in the understorey; insect herbivory was 50% higher in gaps than in understoreys of tropical forests but did not differ significantly between gaps and understories in temperate forests of either hemisphere. Results are consistent with the idea that low resource availability - and not temperature - limits insect herbivore activity in forest understoreys, especially in the tropics, and suggest the selective influence of insect herbivory on late-successional tree species may have been over-estimated.

year: 2018

title: Boat electrofishing survey of fish abundance in the Ohau Channel, Rotorua, in 2016

authors: Hicks, Brendan J.

abstract: The aim of the survey was to provide on-going monitoring of the fish communities and abundance by boat electrofishing in the Ohau Channel, especially fish species that are taonga to Maori (tuna, or eels, morihana, or goldfish, and kōura, or freshwater crayfish). In the current study, we present the findings from the tenth year of sampling (2016) and a summary of previous surveys.

text: Boat electrofishing survey of fish abundance in the Ohau Channel, Rotorua, in 2016 The aim of the survey was to provide on-going monitoring of the fish communities and abundance by boat electrofishing in the Ohau Channel, especially fish species that are taonga to Maori (tuna, or eels, morihana, or goldfish, and kōura, or freshwater crayfish). In the current study, we present the findings from the tenth year of sampling (2016) and a summary of previous surveys.

year: 2017