What impedes oil and gas companies' transparency?
By: Paul Healy, Venkat Kuppuswamy, George Serafeim
Contributors: Kuppuswamy, Venkat; Serafeim, George; Harvard Business School
Series: Working paper / Harvard Business School -- 12-038; Working paper (Harvard Business School) -- 12-038
Publisher: Harvard Business School
Published: 2011
Place of publication: Boston]
Language: eng
Number of pages: 48
Description: We examine determinants of oil and gas companies' transparency in reporting on business activities in host countries where they operate. We find that our index of transparency across host countries is lower the more corrupt the host country, the higher the number of nationalizations in that host country in the past, and the fewer the number of oil and gas companies operating in the host country. The results of additional tests are consistent with the risk of expropriation being a barrier to information disclosure about firm performance. In contrast, we find no evidence that disclosure of government payments is related to proprietary costs. Moreover, holding the host country constant we find that firms coming from more corrupt home countries are less transparent about their government payment.
Notes: "November 2011" -- Publisher's website.

Includes bibliographical references.