Corporate Audit Mechanisms and Financial Reporting Quality of Listed Consumer Goods Manufacturing Companies in Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigated the relationship between corporate audit mechanisms and financial reporting quality of listed consumer goods manufacturing companies in Nigeria. The study utilized a sample of thirteen listed manufacturing companies in the consumer goods sector for a period of seven years (2012-2018). The Ordinary Least Square multiple regression technique was employed in the analysis of a pool of panel data obtained from the published annual reports of the sampled firms. The study found that external audit attribute (audit fee) and audit committee attribute (membership tenure) have significant relationship with financial reporting quality (earnings management, reporting timeliness, accounting conservatism and value relevance) of the sampled firms at 95% confidence level. The implication is that variation in reporting quality is significantly predicted by the audit mechanisms. The study concludes that corporate audit mechanisms (audit fee and audit committee tenure) have significant impact on the financial reporting quality of listed consumer goods manufacturing companies in Nigeria. Based on the findings, it was recommended among others, that compensation for external auditors should include upward review of the audit fee annually and the provision of necessary resources both financial and otherwise to enhance quality financial reporting.

Keywords: Audit, Corporate Audit Mechanism, Financial reporting Quality, Audit committee

DOI: 10.7176/RJFA/11-22-04

Publication date: November 30^th 2020