Some 200 companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange plan to disclose financial results for the fiscal first half ended in September on or after 3:30 p.m., people familiar with the matter said.
The move apparently comes in line with the TSE's plan to extend its stock trading hours by 30 minutes to 3:30 p.m., starting on Nov. 5. Many companies currently release their earnings reports between 3 p.m. and 3:29 p.m. after the stock market closes.
The delay in disclosure signals that companies make light of investors and increases the risk of insider trading, critics said.
Many companies are scheduled to release their earnings reports for the six months in early November.
Of the 1,103 companies that disclosed their first-quarter results between 3 p.m. and 3:29 p.m. this summer, about 500 companies plan to release their first-half results during the same time even after the stock trading hours are extended, according to a TSE report compiled as of Oct. 3.
The TSE report also found that around 50 companies will release their results before 3 p.m.
The TSE has urged listed companies to promptly disclose important information such as financial results. However, many companies are reluctant to do so. A corporate executive said that financial results disclosed during trading hours "could have a negative impact on stock prices."
"If executives hold a press conference promptly after the disclosure of data and explain it, it will be possible to prevent investors from jumping to conclusions based on some figures," a strategist at an asset management company said.
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