In a Truth Social post today, trump stated that companies should no longer be forced to report earnings on a Quarterly basis and rather on a semi-annual basis.
Trump states that: “This will save money, and allow managers to focus on properly running their companies, ... Did you ever hear the statement that, ‘China has a 50 to 100 year view on management of a company, whereas we run our companies on a quarterly basis???’ Not good!!!!”
This reflects statements made by both his opponents and large figures within the investing community, such as Jamie Dimon of JPM Chase, Warren Buffett, and Hillary Clinton. It is alleged that this quarterly reporting practice has resulted in less publicly traded companies as they don't want to have the restriction of being short term rather than long term growth.
This idea is pending SEC review, however it has been pushed for by both private and public figures, and it seems very likely that this would be approved. Some of the key drawbacks are: lack of data being reported for economists & policy makers (i.e. travel demand shifts, loan losses, and updates on innovation driven economic booms [such as AI]). "Moving to a six-month reporting period could delay those insights and exaggerate stock moves during shifts in the economy and various industries."
Source: https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/15/economy/trump-quarterly-reporting-sec-earnings
This is an interesting idea, and without looking into it further, it makes a lot of sense to me. I understand the potential problems like increased market volatility, but it would probably just take some getting used to, and it would be relatively normal again.
ReplyDeleteI believe companies could definitely be better off reporting semiannually, as they would have to worry about it much less.
You did a great job laying out both Trump’s reasoning and the broader context with figures like Buffett and Dimon supporting the idea. Do you think switching to semi-annual reporting would actually encourage companies to focus more on long-term growth, or would it just reduce transparency and increase risk for investors?
ReplyDeleteThe push to move from quarterly to semi-annual reporting raises a tough trade-off. On the one hand, fewer reports might free companies to think beyond the next three months; on the other hand, investors and policymakers would lose valuable, timely insights into how different sectors are performing. I wonder if a compromise, such as keeping quarterly updates but simplifying them, could strike a balance between long-term planning and the need for transparency.
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