The synergetic impact of environmental and innovation information disclosure on corporate financial performance: An empirical study based on China coal listed companies

Due to the industrial features of high resource dependence and high state-owned shares, the impact of the environmental information disclosure (EID) and technological innovation information disclosure (TIID) on the financial performance of Chinese coal listed companies remains unknown. This paper selects 26 listed coal companies in China from 2014 to 2018 as empirical research objects, combined with the production characteristics of the coal industry to build indicator systems. Several regression models are applied to verify the respective and synergistic impacts of EID and TIID on the corporate performance of listed coal enterprises in China. Results show that there is a significant positive correlation between EID and TIID of coal companies, but both of them have a negative impact on corporate financial performance. Furthermore, the synergistic effect of EID and TIID will make the negative impact be more obvious. The policy of capacity reduction in the coal industry might be the main reason for the decline in financial performance caused by information disclosure. Even so, corporate information disclosure should be encouraged, and we wish the results of the study can help government departments recognize the current dilemma faced by coal companies and take effective measures to help them overcome difficulties.

Automated summary

The study reveals that the environmental information disclosure and technological innovation information disclosure of Chinese coal listed companies have a negative impact on financial performance, with a synergistic effect exacerbating this negative impact. The policy of capacity reduction in the coal industry may be the main reason for the decline in financial performance caused by information disclosure.