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The current challenge for forecasting smart meters electricity consumption lies in the uncertainty and volatility of load profiles. Moreover, forecasting the electricity consumption for all the meters requires an enormous amount of time. Most papers tend to avoid such complexity by forecasting the electricity consumption at an aggregated level. This paper aims to forecast the electricity consumption for all smart meters at an individual level. This paper, for the first time, takes into account the computational time for training and forecasting the electricity consumption of all the meters.

A novel hybrid autoregressive-statistical equations idea model with the help of clustering and whale optimization algorithm (ARSEI-WOA) is proposed in this paper to forecast the electricity consumption of all the meters with best performance in terms of computational time and prediction accuracy.

The proposed model was tested using realistic Irish smart meters energy data and its performance was compared with nine regression methods including: autoregressive integrated moving average, partial least squares regression, conditional inference tree, M5 rule-based model, k-nearest neighbor, multilayer perceptron, RandomForest, RPART and support vector regression. Results have proved that ARSEI-WOA is an efficient model that is able to achieve an accurate prediction with low computational time.

This paper presents a new hybrid ARSEI model to perform smart meters load forecasting at an individual level instead of an aggregated one. With the help of clustering technique, similar meters are grouped into a few clusters from which reduce the computational time of the training and forecasting process. In addition, WOA improves the prediction accuracy of each meter by finding an optimal factor between the average electricity consumption values of each cluster and the electricity consumption values for each one of its meters.

This study aims to synthesize new disperse dyes based on novel pyrazolyl quinolinone derivatives EQ1 and EQ2 and evaluate their characteristics after dyeing them on a polyester fabric.

New dispersed dyes based on pyrazolyl quinolinone derivatives were prepared and confirmed by different analyses, such as infrared spectroscopy, elemental microanalysis and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. They were dyed on a polyester fabric. The characteristics of dyed polyester were determined by color measurements such as a*, b*, L*, C*, E, Ho, R% and color strength. The electronic structures of EQ1 and EQ2 in gaseous state were investigated using density functional theory/B3LYP/6-311++G (d, p) level of theory.

The suitability of the prepared dyestuffs for dyeing on polyester fabrics has been investigated. The study was concerned with comparing the contrasting depth of shade and levelness. The study was concerned mainly with dye uptake and color measurements at two different temperatures. The results showed that the exhaustion values of dyes inside the polyester at 130°C were higher than those obtained at conventional dyeing temperature (100°C). The exhaustion values of EQ2 were greater than those of EQ1 at 130°C with 2.2%, while the brightness of EQ2 was higher than that of EQ1 at the two investigated temperatures. The results of molecular orbital calculations show that the studied compounds are planar. In addition, the ionization potential of EQ1 was lower than that of EQ2. The results of the theoretical study helped in understanding the dyeing behavior of the investigated azo dyes.

The prepared disperse dyes based on pyrazolyl quinolinone derivatives could be used in textile dyeing of polyester on an industrial scale.

The purpose of this study is to examine the nexus between corporate characteristics and timeliness of financial reporting in Saudi Arabia. Specifically, this study investigates the relationship between financial reporting timeliness and both corporate size, profitability, leverage and institutional ownership.

A sample of 67 of nonfinancial companies listed in the Saudi market during the period 2015–2018 was used. Multivariate regression analysis was performed to analyze the relationship between the four corporate characteristics and timeliness of financial reporting.

The findings revealed that financial reporting timeliness is significantly correlated with three of the corporate's characteristics, which are company size, profitability and leverage, while there is no significant effect of institutional ownership on the timeliness of financial reporting.

The findings of this study may not be generalizable to all companies listed in the Saudi market as a result of limiting the study to nonfinancial companies and excluding financial companies from the sample. Future research may explore the determinants of the timeliness of these companies' financial reporting.

Given the significant interest expressed by investors, regulators and researchers in the field of financial reporting timeliness, especially in emerging markets where financial reports are almost the main and only source of information, this study highlights the role that corporate characteristics play in influencing the financial reporting timeliness in Saudi Arabia as one of emerging markets.

Despite the importance of financial reporting timeliness, there are very few studies that have examined this issue in Saudi Arabia. This study contributes to bridging this gap by examining the relationship between the corporate characteristics and the timeliness of financial reports.

This study aims to examine whether there are differences between financial statements prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and financial statements prepared in accordance with local accounting standards in terms of its ability to present the financial conditions of companies listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange as one of the emerging markets.

Data on study variables were obtained from the published financial statements of 67 of listed companies in the Saudi Stock Exchange during the period 2014–2019. The study addressed the research hypotheses by using Altman Z-score model. Both the T-test and Wilcoxon rank test were used to investigate the significance of differences between the values of Z-score and the individual variables included in the model in the pre- and post-IFRS mandatory adoption periods.

The results revealed a decrease in the values of Z-score as well as the values of the individual variables included in the model in the period following the adoption of IFRS than it was before the adoption of IFRS, which indicates the ability of IFRS to show the financial conditions of companies more transparently than local accounting standards. However, the results of the T-test and Wilcoxon test showed that these decreases were not statistically significant.

This study has some limitations, including the small sample size as a result of the small size of the Saudi Stock Exchange, As well as the reliance of this study only on the Altman model with its five variables in assessing financial conditions without examining the impact of other factors that may affect the financial conditions of companies.

Financial conditions of the companies have important implications for multiple parties such as management, government, investors and others as an early warning sign that enables them to take the necessary measures early before the actual bankruptcy occurs and what results in costs.

Although assessing financial conditions of the companies is one of the basic uses of accounting information, this topic has not received sufficient attention as a means to test the benefits of adopting IFRS, especially in emerging markets such as Saudi Stock Exchange. This is the first study to examine the impact of adopting IFRS on the transparency of financial reporting in assessing financial conditions in Saudi Arabia.

This study aims to examine the economic consequences of the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in Saudi Arabia. More specifically, the study examines the impact of the mandatory adoption of IFRS on the accounting-based performance measures.

Data on study variables were obtained manually from the published financial statements of 67 of listed companies in the Saudi stock market during the period 2014–2019. The study addressed the research hypotheses by comparing the accounting-based performance measures computed under the Saudi accounting standards for three years (2014–2016) before the mandatory adoption of IFRS and the corresponding three years (2017–2019) after the mandatory adoption of IFRS. The Mann–Whitney U Test was used to investigate the significance of differences between the values of performance measures in the pre- and post-mandatory adoption periods.

The findings of the study revealed that there were no significant differences between the values of accounting-based performance measures related to the three performance categories (i.e. profitability, liquidity and leverage) in the post-mandatory adoption period (IFRS) compared to the values of these measures in the pre-mandatory adoption period (Saudi accounting standards).

The results of the study indicated that there is a good convergence between the Saudi accounting standards that were implemented before 2017 and the IFRS that began to be applied starting from 2017. This convergence resulted in a low significant impact of IFRS on the financial statements of companies and then on the accounting-based performance measures calculated from them. However, this study suffers from some limitations, the most important of which is the small sample size as a result of the small number of listed companies in the Saudi market during the study period.

Although the impact of the adoption of IFRS have always been a subject of intense research in developed countries, the study of the impact of the adoption of IFRS in developing countries still limited. This study contributes to the literature by examining the economic consequences of adopting IFRS in Saudi Arabia as one of developing countries.

This study aims to explore the relationship between sustainability reporting and the financial performance of companies listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange as one of the emerging markets.

The study collects data from the corporate annual reports of a sample of 67 companies listed on the Saudi stock exchanges during the period 2016–2019. Financial performance has been measured using four accounting-based measures: return on assets, return on equity, return on capital employed and earnings per share. The relationship between financial performance and sustainability reporting has been estimated using a sustainability index that includes three dimensions (environment, health and safety, and social responsibility).

The results reveal that the sustainability reporting of Saudi companies, in general, is low. The results also indicate that there is a positive relationship between corporate financial performance and sustainability reporting, whether for the composite index or the three sub-indexes. However, this positive relationship is not statistically significant.

Results of this study are limited to the context in which the study was conducted, which is the Saudi stock exchange from 2016 to 2019, and then the generalization of the results may be limited to listed companies operating in a similar social and economic context. The study also depends on accounting-based measures for financial performance without using market-based measures.

This study comes at the appropriate time with Saudi Arabia's adoption of a comprehensive economic plan called “Saudi Vision 2030”, of which sustainability is at the heart. Despite the efforts of the Saudi government to support sustainability, studies on this issue are still very few.

Because of the increasing number of corruption and financial fraud cases, especially in developing countries, the education of forensic accounting has become important and universities should offer it as part of its curriculum. This study aims to explore the current status of forensic accounting education in Saudi Arabia as a developing country and its adequacy from the perspectives of accounting students in Saudi universities.

A questionnaire survey was administered to a sample of accounting students from four Saudi universities. The questionnaire contained five groups of questions aimed at exploring the students’ perception of the benefits of forensic accounting education, their perception of the current status of integrating forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum and their satisfaction with this status, their desire for greater coverage of forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum, their opinion regarding the appropriate approach for covering forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum and the topics of forensic accounting that should be covered.

The findings of this study revealed a clear weakness in integrating forensic accounting into accounting education in Saudi universities. This weak level of integration does not satisfy most students who believe in the increased demand for the forensic accounting profession in the future and therefore the need to make greater coverage of forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum to acquire the skills that qualify them to work in this profession after graduation. The students expressed that the appropriate approach for covering forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum is to add a stand- alone course that includes all forensic accounting topics.

The results of this study provide indications to the administrators of Saudi universities to start developing accounting curriculum to integrate forensic accounting topics into accounting education. This will result in an increase in the effectiveness of the role of these universities in achieving the goals of the Saudi Vision 2030 which aims to achieve transparency and combat corruption and fraud in Saudi Arabia.

This study contributes to the existing literature concerning the forensic accounting by focusing on the integration of forensic accounting in accounting education in Saudi Arabia as context that has not previously examined.

Undergraduate accounting program at Umm Al-Qura University in Saudi Arabia is a unique case. The program includes 147 credit hours of which 28 credit hours are religious courses. This study aims to examine the effect of teaching these religious courses on students’ ethical perceptions and decisions.

A survey was conducted for a sample of accounting students at Umm Al-Qura University. The sample was divided into two groups; the first group includes students who did not study religious courses, while the second group includes students who study religious courses. The questionnaire contained three groups of questions that aimed to explore students’ perceptions of ethics in general, students’ perceptions of business ethics and explored their ethical attitudes regarding some accounting decisions that involve ethical dilemmas. Independent two-sample t-test and multiple regression analysis were used to determine whether the responses of the two groups were significantly different.

The findings of the study revealed that teaching religious courses led to an improvement in students’ perception of business ethics and an improvement in students’ ethical decision-making. However, the results of the independent sample t-test showed that this improvement was not significant. The results of the study also revealed that male students tend to make less ethical decisions than female students.

The findings offer an indication for those responsible for managing the accounting program at Umm Al-Qura University to start developing the program so that some of the general religious courses are replaced with specialized courses in accounting ethics that focus directly on ethical dilemmas faced by the accountant when practicing the accounting profession.

This study contributes to the current literature related to examining the effect of teaching ethics courses on the ethical perception of accounting students by focusing on accounting students in Saudi Arabia as a context that has not been examined before.

This study aims to examine the relationship between corporate governance mechanisms, namely, board independence, board size and gender diversity, and the extent of corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure for companies listed on the Saudi stock exchange.

Data has been extracted from the annual reports of a sample of 67 companies listed on the Saudi Stock Exchange during the period 2014–2019. Three panel data techniques have been used to investigate the association between governance variables and the extent of CSR disclosures after statistically controlling the effects of the size, leverage and profitability of the companies.

The results of this study indicate that board independence and board size have positive and significant associations with the extent of CSR disclosures. However, the study finds that the percentage of female representation on the board has a positive effect on the extent of CSR disclosure, but that this effect is not statistically significant.

The results of this study are limited to the context in which the study was conducted, which is the Saudi stock exchange during the period 2014–2019, and then the generalization of the results may be limited to listed companies operating in a similar social and economic context. Also, the data sources in this study were limited to the annual reports of companies only.

The results of this study provide some indications for policymakers in Saudi Arabia to take what is necessary to promote corporate governance mechanisms and, therefore, enhance CSR practices.

This study contributes to the literature on CSR by providing empirical evidence on the impact of corporate governance mechanisms on the extent of CSR disclosure from one of the developing countries, which is Saudi Arabia.

Whistleblowing has received increasing attention and support in recent years as a means of detecting and correcting illegal, unethical or illegitimate practices in organizations. This study aims to examine the extent to which accounting students in Saudi Arabia, as prospective accountants, have the courage to blow the whistle.

A questionnaire survey was administered to a sample of final year accounting students in Saudi Arabia. The questionnaire contained four groups of questions aimed at exploring the students' reaction to whistleblowing, the whistleblowing channel that students prefer, the encouraging factors for whistleblowing and the factors that discourage whistleblowing from the students' point of view. The instrument questions were developed with reference to previous studies conducted in other countries.

The findings of the study revealed that accounting students have the courage to whistle the wrongdoing. What encourages students to blow the whistle is their perception that fraud and corruption is an unethical behavior which goes against religious values and that the wrongdoer must take appropriate punishment. However, there are some factors that negatively affect the students' courage to blow the whistle, the most important of which is the fear of retaliation, in addition to their feeling that the wrongdoer will not be held accountable.

A sample of accounting students from one university limits generalizing the results to the population of accounting students in Saudi Arabia. Future research could examine this issue using larger samples of students, employees or professional accountants.

This study serves the Saudi vision 2030, which aims to combat fraud and corruption which negatively affect economic development. This study sheds light on the encouraging factors for Whistleblowing, which must be strengthened, as well as the discouraging factors, which must be addressed to mitigate their impact.

This study explores whistleblowing in Saudi Arabia where there is no research on this topic. This study comes at the appropriate time, as Saudi Arabia is currently witnessing an increasing interest in combating corruption, whether in the public or private sectors, and has recently introduced several legislations, as well as initiatives to encourage citizens to whistle the wrongdoing.