PurposeThe study aims to examine the level and extent of forward-looking information (FLI) disclosure and identify the determinants driving the FLI disclosure (FLID) in the context of an emerging and developing economy.Design/methodology/approachThe sample includes annual reports of the top 30 listed companies in Bangladesh for the years 2013–2017. The content analysis approach is used to examine the practice of FLID and to determine the extent of FLID based on the index. Multiple linear regression analysis is performed to identify the determinants of FLID.FindingsThis research finds that board size, auditor's global affiliation, leverage and profitability have a substantial positive impact on FLID. By contrast, firm size and listing age have a significant negative association with FLID. Moreover, contrary to our expectation, female representation in the boardroom has an inverse effect on FLID. This study, however, does not suggest any significant impact of board independence.Research limitations/implicationsSmall sample size may limit the generalizability of the findings. Besides, the FLID index score may be affected by the subjective judgment while analyzing the content of the annual report.Practical implicationsThe findings of this paper may assist the regulators and policymakers in incorporating this new reporting paradigm in regulations. Alternatively, the current research can serve as a basis to further understand the importance of FLID for the stakeholders.Originality/valueThis empirical study contributes to the current FLI literature in Bangladesh. A handful of studies have been done to examine the nature and level of FLID and find out the determinants of FLID in the developing countries. To the best of the authors' knowledge, no study yet has been explored on FLID and its determinants by classifying them as qualitative and quantitative in Bangladesh.

Article History JEL Classification:M490.The necessities of cohesive, integrated and decision-supportive information for apprehending the future prospect and capacity of the companies have led to the advent of integrated reporting (). This study examines whether the Bangladeshi companies are moving towards . The extent of practices of the listed companies in Bangladesh for the year 2014 to 2016 has been measured with a view to reaching a conclusion. In regard to this study, DSE30 companies have been considered as the sample companies while their integrated reports or, in absence, their annual reports have been scrutinized. Content analysis approach has been followed in this study to construct index considering the fifty items of the eight content elements of as prescribed by International Integrated Reporting Council in its International Framework. Our analysis exhibits that in 2016, 22% of the sample companies have adopted , which has been commenced in 2015 whereas no company has undertaken in the year 2014. Content-wise index depicts that the disclosures of items under each of the content elements have been increasing over the time. Item-wise analysis has demonstrated some items of (i.e. materiality determinations process, linkage between strategy and resource allocation plan), disclosures of which have been appeared in the annual reports after the adoption of . Company-wise ensures that index for each company has been either increasing or remaining the same over the period. In total, index for all the sample companies has increased to 0.6148 from 0.4511 over the three years. These indicate that companies in Bangladesh have started adopting through standalone integrated report or annual report in an integrated way in spite of having no mandatory requirement. Contribution/ Originality:In spite of an emerging area of corporate reporting, there are few empirical research exploring practices in developing countries. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first of its kinds which examines the extent of practices from Bangladesh perspective.

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The objective of this paper is to examine the nature and extent of sustainability reporting practices by the listed companies in Bangladesh. In order to fulfill this objective, the research has examined the content analysis of annual report (2015)(2016) and website of the top 50 listed companies (according to market capitalization). Based on Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G4 guidelines, the study investigates three broad areas i.e. economic, environmental and social with 40 indicators. The findings of the study demonstrate that organizations in Bangladesh address few sustainability issues. Companies focus more on community development which is 90%, followed by employment and employee benefits (67%). The level of disclosures in website is meagre where only 26% of the sample companies disclose at least one indicator. Organizations' attention on issues like environment, human rights and product responsibility is limited in relation to other issues. The extent of disclosure is also poor that is 66% of the companies use less than 25 sentences in sustainability reporting. Moreover, only 16% of the sample companies use separate sustainability reporting section. The limited disclosures on sustainability issues may be because of voluntary sustainability reporting in Bangladesh.

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