In a 2016 comment letter, the SEC summarizes the ongoing debate regarding the usefulness of market risk disclosures and calls for additional discussion (SEC Concept Release 2016). In response to the SEC's call, I investigate whether investors and firms benefit from market risk disclosures. Prior literature suggests that informative corporate disclosure is associated with improved liquidity and investment efficiency. I find that informative textual contents of market risk disclosures improve investors' information environment, and as a result, are associated with higher liquidity level, lower liquidity uncertainty, and improved investment efficiency. My study is relevant to the ongoing debate regarding the usefulness of market risk disclosures, calls for more detailed regulatory guidance for market risk disclosures, and contributes to the literature on liquidity, investment efficiency, and risk factor disclosures. |