Management tone and corporate information asymmetry in times of pandemic crisis

In this paper, we study the impact of management tones on corporate information asymmetry at earnings communication conferences during China’s COVID-19 outbreak. We show that firms’ information asymmetry was reduced when management used more positive tones. This positive effect was more pronounced for firms in those regions more affected by the pandemic, when participants raised more questions, or when the Chief Executive Officers attended at these conferences. We argue that an internet search is a channel through which management tones reduce information asymmetry. Our paper sheds light on the importance of management tones during a crisis and highlights the positive roles that top management engagement and conference participants’ activism play in the information environment.