NARRATIVE REPORTING AND STAKEHOLDER INFORMATION NEEDS: A CROSS-COUNTRY STUDY OF EMERGING ISLAMIC CAPITAL MARKETS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61506/Keywords:
Storytelling, Information requirements of stakeholders, Islamic emerging markets, Annual reports, Voluntary reporting, Financial analysts, Content analysis; Cross-national comparison; Stakeholder theory; Emerging economiesAbstract
This paper examines the correlation between narrative reporting and the information needs of the stakeholders in new Islamic capital markets. Although previous studies have mainly considered the case of individual countries and narrow groupings of stakeholders, this article provides an inter-country comparison of the success of narrative disclosures in meeting the demands of various stakeholder groups, including investors, financial analysts, regulators, and creditors, in some Islamic economies. This study employs stakeholder theory as a theoretical framework to examine the narrative reporting content, investigating the level and quality of narrative reporting in annual reports of listed firms in Iran, Malaysia, and Pakistan. Structured surveys are administered to key stakeholders as a method of collecting primary data, with content analysis applied to company reports for analysis. Analysis reveals significant deficiencies in meeting stakeholder expectations regarding actual disclosures, particularly in forward-looking and analytical disclosures. The results of the studies highlight the importance of unified reporting systems and improved enforcement tools in Islamic financial markets to enhance transparency, increase stakeholders' credibility, and advance the capital markets.
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