The SEC will fast-track Trump's push to scrap rules on quarterly earnings reports

Wall Street’s top watchdog will fast-track President Donald Trump’s plan to scrap quarterly company reporting as part of a deregulation drive on businesses, its chief has said.

Paul Atkins, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said the proposal will allow companies to report twice a year rather than four times, while claiming the move is “not a retreat from transparency."

“It is time for the SEC to remove its thumb from the scales and allow the market to dictate the optimal reporting frequency based on factors such as the company’s industry, size and investor expectations,” he wrote in a column for the Financial Times.

Atkins also insisted that the changes should not be driven by political trends, though his column comes weeks after President Donald Trump floated the idea on social media, saying the current rules are “not good!!!”

Most publicly traded companies in the U.S. file quarterly reports under rules in place since 1970. By law, the SEC can't just flip a switch on that. It must adhere to a public comment period, among other formal procedures. Atkins did not lay out a timeline for the proposed changes.

In 2018, during Trump’s first term, the SEC, led by Trump appointee Jay Clayton, formally sought public comment on whether and how to “reduce burdens” associated with quarterly reporting. After receiving input, the agency did not move to change the reporting frequency.

In recent quarters, company earnings reports have highlighted the cost to American firms and consumers of Trump's ongoing trade wars. Making such reports more infrequent could slow the flow of such information to investors and the public.

“The government should provide the minimum effective dose of regulation needed to protect investors while allowing businesses to flourish,” Atkins wrote in the FT. 

Trump’s plan “puts a renewed focus on market-driven disclosure practices that favor the interests of companies and their investors over prescriptive regulatory mandates.”

Atkins also warned against disclosure “driven by political fads or distorted objectives," pointing to Europe’s recently adopted rules on corporate sustainability reporting.

If “Europe wants to promote its capital markets by attracting more listings and investment, it should focus on reducing unnecessary reporting burdens,” he added. “For our part, I am committed to ensuring that in the U.S., the SEC prioritizes the wellbeing of investors above the wishes of ideologues."

Trump’s call for reporting changes follows months of attacks on federal agencies, including the August firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner after a routine revision of jobs data and reports showing a slowdown in growth — signs that have alarmed economists and brought increased media and public attention to economic data streams.

—Catherine Baab contributed to this article.