Equal access to information: Do cross-listed firms' stock prices respond to earnings disclosed in overseas and local markets?

We estimate stock price responses to earnings disclosed by 110 cross-listed companies as a function of the order of information release in the US and the UK to address selective disclosure and capital market integration. We find that firms did not disclose the same information simultaneously in both countries. We find little evidence of US or UK price response to disclosures released only in the other country, suggesting that direct and simultaneous disclosure in each market is necessary to ensure equal access to information about cross-listed firms. Securities market regulators' concerns about cross-country conformity of disclosure appear to be warranted.