Open government data and management earnings forecast quality: evidence from China

We explore the impact of open government data on earnings forecast quality by analyzing China’s staggered establishment of open government data platforms. We find that open government data improves management earnings forecast quality by reducing data acquisition costs and lowering industry entry barriers. The effect is stronger for managers with greater competencies and no political affiliations, firms with higher stakeholder attention, and regions with lower development degree. Further analyses demonstrate the role of open government data in improving broader forecasting behaviors and in weakening immediate market reactions to forecasts. Overall, our study reveals the value creation role of public data.