财务会计概念框架的发展及作用探讨

文章在回顾和评述财务会计概念框架的发展与现状的基础上,着重分析了美国财务会计概念框架的多次尝试与发展,从中归纳出财务会计概念框架的一些基本作用。     

公允价值的应用发展及概念演变

公允价值的应用发展和概念演变过程是会计计量不断追寻"市场评价"的过程,"活跃市场的公平交易假设"是公允价值的唯一计量基础.本文对中美两国公允价值的应用发展进行了探讨.     

现值会计计量:研究历程、实际运用与原因剖析

2006年2月15日,财政部发布了38项具体会计准则,并将于2007年1月1日起率先在上市公司执行。新会计准则与国际惯例接轨,比较全面地在我国会计准则体系中导入了公允价值计量属性,正式确定了包括历史成本、重置成本、可变现净值、现值以及公允价值等在内的五种主要会计计量属性。本文针对现值会计计量问题,探讨了中外现值计量研究的发展历程、实际运用及其原因。     

The Treatment of Non-Recurring Items in the Income Statement and their Consistency with FASB Concept Statements

This study provides evidence on the consistency of Accounting Principles Board Statement No. 30 (APB, 1973) classification criteria with the objectives of the Financial Accounting Standards Board's Concept Statements Nos 1 and 2 (FASB, 1978, 1980). It is hypothesized that the current APB 30 requirement to classify items of a non-recurring nature in the operating section of the income statement decreases the predictive ability of income before extraordinary items. A random sample of 50 firms with non-recurring adjustments to income, which were included in the operating section of the income statement, was selected from Standard and Poor's Corporation Records. Naive models were used to generate earnings per share forecasts for the year in which the adjustment to income occurred, the prior year and subsequent year.
The results indicate a statistically significant decrease in the predictive ability of earnings per share before extraordinary items associated with the year that the adjustment occurred and a significant increase in the variability of earnings per share. Also, differences in predictive ability were noted between small and large firms and firms with positive and negative adjustments to income.
The results of this study also imply that the managers of most firms with negative adjustments to income are not using the adjustments to smooth income for either the purpose of decreasing the variability of earnings or increasing predictability. The results are more consistent with the 'big bath' theory. These conclusions appear to be more relevant for smaller firms than larger firms.     

The path of lease resistance: How changes to lease accounting treatment may impact your business

In this installment of Accounting Matters, we examine potential consequences of the Financial Accounting Standards Board's Proposed Accounting Standards Updates for Leases. In the context of a previous accounting change (FIN 48), we investigate how these changes will affect firms’ accounting choices, investment decisions, debt covenant requirements, and analysis of other key financial data. Changes in accounting standards may have significant indirect economic effect on companies as they can trigger debt covenant violations, restrict access to capital, and distort key financial information used by investors and lenders. New accounting standards may also directly affect the calculation of employee bonuses and incentives that utilize EBITDA or operating income as benchmarks. We include recommendations for managers and identify specific debt covenant components that may limit the negative consequences of the proposed change to lease accounting.     

From compromise to concept? – a review of ‘other comprehensive income’

This paper reviews how ‘other comprehensive income’ (OCI) entered financial reporting by tracing major Financial Accounting Standard Board (FASB) and International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) projects that required direct entries to equity and describing recent efforts to make sense of the practice. It was the fixation on net income that brought about departures from all-inclusive income, which were repeatedly made over the years without decidedly devoting attention to developing a conceptual basis. OCI was used as a compromise to incorporate current values in the balance sheet, while retaining historical cost principles in the income statement. When the practice was labeled as OCI, it became institutionalized without a clear meaning. A sense-making of the practice then replaced the debates on the adequacy of using OCI and standard setters have realized that additional layers of theory became necessary to explain, for example, reclassification adjustments. Yet, the IASB has made clear in its recent Exposure Draft of a revised conceptual framework that it does not intend to pursue a fresh start in performance reporting that appears to be needed conceptually. Instead, practical considerations, primarily on International Financial Reporting Standards adoption in Japan, seem to lead to another ex-post rationalization of OCI, this time around a conceptually vacuous use of the relevance characteristic.     

FASB放宽按公允价值计价会计准则的影响评析

美国财务会计准则委员会(FASB)决定修改SFAS157号准则——公允价值计量,放宽按公允价值计价的会计准则,给予金融机构在资产计价方面更大的灵活性,以期帮助恢复美国经济,引起会计界强烈反响。本文通过对修订公允价值计量准则的背景及产生的后果进行评析,旨在揭示准则修订的实质,指出修订按公允价值计量会计准则不应成为拯救美国金融危机的"灵丹妙药",我国应加快公允价值理论和应用实践等方面的研究,充分体现中国特色。     

衍生金融工具的确认和计量

本文主要分为金融工具定义,分类以及衍生金融工具的会计确认和计量四个部分.重点介绍了衍生金融工具的会计确认和计量,包括衍生金融工具是否符合会计确认的标准,FASB为满足衍生工具进入表内确认和报告而对会计概念的一些更改和拓宽,衍生工具会计确认的过程和意义,以及对衍生金融工具进行分类计量的过程.     

Principles- versus rules-based accounting standards: the FASB's standard setting strategy

In response to criticism of rules-based accounting standards and Section 108(d) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the SEC proposed principles-based (or 'objectives-oriented') standards. We identify several shortcomings with this approach and focus on two of them. First, the format (type) of a standard is dependent on the contents of what the standard regulates. Given the asset/liability approach combined with fair values, we argue that the combination of this measurement concept with principles-based standards is inconsistent because it requires significant guidance for management judgment. Second, we propose the inclusion of a true-and-fair override as a necessary requirement for any format that is more than 'principles-only' to deal with inconsistencies between principles and guidance. We discuss the benefits of this override and present evidence from the United Kingdom's experience.