TMX Group, which runs the Toronto Stock Exchange, is in talks with Canadian regulators to push through new rules that would allow all companies to report earnings every six months instead of quarterly, with similar efforts underway in the United States.

The move comes as Canada tries to revive its IPO market and reverse a years-long contraction of publicly traded companies, driven by delistings and takeovers.

The Canadian Securities Administrators, the country’s top securities regulator, published a proposal late last year that would allow smaller companies, typically those with less than $10 million in revenue, to replace quarterly earnings reports with semi-annual filings.

TMX suggests the new proposed rules should also include large publicly listed companies, CEO John McKenzie said in an interview on the sidelines of the Futures Industry Association’s annual conference in Florida.

US President Donald Trump said last year that companies should be allowed to get rid of quarterly reporting and switch to a semi-annual earnings schedule. The US Securities and Exchange Commission has said it is making Trump’s proposal a priority.

Companies in many parts of Europe and Asia, as well as Australia, have been reporting earnings every six months for many years.

“We recommended that (CSA) actually take it all the way, and we should really consider making it optional for all public companies,” McKenzie said. “Then the companies will make a decision with their shareholders. If the shareholders need more information, they will tell them or they will not provide the capital.”

To encourage more companies to list on stock exchanges, Canada has reduced the tax burden for smaller companies in recent years, while also relaxing onerous financial disclosure requirements for companies seeking to tap public markets.

“Last year, at one point, Trump said (getting rid of quarterly reporting) was a good idea. If it gets traction in the U.S., we’ve already engaged with Canadian regulators who said we have to follow it immediately, like there could be zero lag time,” McKenzie said.

Mining IPO Revival

TMX also expects a big pick-up in IPO activity this year, driven by a recovery in the mining industry that has helped offset the impact of market volatility stemming from the war in Iran, as well as recent software sales.

Several companies, including AGT Food & Ingredients and drugmaker Apotex, are aiming to tap the public markets this year.

McKenzie said the Toronto Stock Exchange is poised to regain its status as the world’s top mining hub after a recent resurgence in sector listings due to increased global demand for complex minerals over the past year.

Approximately 1,100 mining companies currently trade on Canadian stock exchanges.

“What the US administration is actually doing in terms of onshoring or building mineral relationships to counter the Chinese market, which is actually trying to do the same, you’re creating more and more opportunities for prospectors and developers to build these mines. So it’s a very pro-mining economy,” McKenzie said.