Goodwill Accounting in Selected Countries and the Harmonization of International Accounting Standards

Economic and financial markets interpenetrate and national economies are increasingly interdependent. This results in a growing need for comparability of accounting procedures internationally. Accounting for goodwill illustrates this phenomenon. By specifying the recommended asset treatment for purchased, positive goodwill, and the five-year amortization period, IASC has taken a significant step towards harmonization of goodwill accounting. As noted in the article, however, the implications for consolidated income may be quite drastic. This is especially so with respect to the implications of the revised IAS 22 (following IAS ED 32) for potential leveraged corporate buy-outs.     

中国会计准则国际协调效果的实证研究

自改革开放以来,我国进行了一系列旨在加强会计准则国际协调的改革,会计信息编报者和使用评价者都十分关心会计准则国际协调的效果。本文在借鉴国内外相关研究的基础上,采用实证研究方法从纵向上比较和分析AB股公司的净利润差异与会计信息价值相关性的变化,以期对我国会计准则国际协调的总体效果做出经验性评价。     

对我国新企业会计准则中公允价值运用相关问题的思考

通过比较、归纳与分析,发现我国2006年新企业会计准则及其应用指南在规范公允价值计量上,未集中地对各具体会计准则共同涉及的公允价值计量的基本问题进行统一的规定,没有对"在不存在活跃市场情况下运用现值等估价技术确定公允价值问题"作出明确与具体的指导;公允价值的概念界定欠完善,确认标准未明确,计量对象的范围欠适当;对以非公允价值进行后续计量的资产,其减值损失转回的会计处理不恰当.对此,应进行相应的改进与完善.     

Examining the differences between United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (U.S. GAAP) and International Accounting Standards (IAS): implications for the harmonization of accounting standards

Current trends indicate continued movement towards the harmonization of accounting standards, but not without difficulty and concern. At times, the political and financial market pressure, push the movement in opposite directions. The paper discusses the conceptual framework used in establishing Global Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) (International Accounting Standards, IAS) and U.S. GAAP. Numerous transactional examples are illustrated under both Global GAAP and U.S. GAAP treatment. Several country specific references are presented demonstrating the difficulty in achieving harmonization. Implications for harmonization of accounting standards include arguments “for” and “against” Global GAAP.     

The Withdrawal of Current Cost Accounting in the United Kingdom: A Study of the Accounting Standards Committee

Evidence from the archives of the U.K. Accounting Standards Committee (ASC) is used to trace the events leading to the withdrawal of the current cost accounting standard, SSAP 16, from 1980 to 1988. Three central issues are addressed. First, the ASC's role as a regulatory body is considered in the light of the failure to obtain compliance with SSAP 16 and to find an acceptable replacement. Second, the decline in support for SSAP 16 is explained in terms of changes in the economic environment. Third, the roles of different interest groups in the process are analysed.     

财政部召开中国会计审计准则体系发布会

2月15日,财政部在京举行中国会计审计准则体系发布会,发布了39项企业会计准则和48项注册会计师审计准则,这标志着适应我国市场经济发展要求、与国际惯例趋同的企业会计准则体系和注册会计师审计准则体系正式建立。     

解析新会计准则对会计信息价值相关性的影响

本文研究了新会计准则对会计信息价值相关性的影响。我们发现,新准则实施后,会计信息总体的价值相关性显著提高,并且受新准则影响部分的价值相关性改善程度显著高于不受影响的部分。在此基础上,我们还分析了公允价值计量对受影响部分信息质量改善的贡献。研究还发现,对于非金融行业,非公允净资产比公允净资产更具有价值相关性;而对于金融行业,二者没有显著差别。本文的研究表明,新会计准则确实将原有准则的不合理部分做了修正,其实施有助于会计质量的整体提高。但是这种修正并不是简单地盲目采用公允价值,而是综合考虑各种计价方式的结果。本文的研究结果对中国乃至国际会计准则的改革提供了有意义的信息。     

从美国成本会计准则看我国军事采购成本会计准则的构建

美国联邦政府采购成本会计准则建立的根本原因在于美国联邦政府采购中成本类型合同的使用.其与我国军事采购过程中成本类型合同的使用相似.为加强我国军事采购合同成本的管理,有必要构建我国军事采购成本会计准则,而美国联邦政府采购成本会计准则涵盖的内容、豁免条款和范围层次的使用,以及披露报表的编报,对于建立我国军事采购成本会计准则具有积极的借鉴意义.     

Politics, Processes and the Future of Australian Accounting Standards

The perspective of public interest and interest group theories of regulation is adopted to consider the future of Australian accounting standards following major reforms proposed by the Australian Commonwealth government as part of its 1997 Corporate Law Economic Reform Program (CLERP). Interest groups in the Australian environment are identified. Their lobbying had influenced the initial proposals; and their reactions when the CLERP proposals were published resulted in substantial modifications to the CLERP proposals, which had initially recommendedthat International Accounting Standards (IASs) be adopted as national standards from 1 January 1999.
The role of accounting standards and the structure of standard setting are explored. The political nature of standard setting is illustrated through a review of the CLERP proposals, submissions of various interest groups and the government's responses to them. The central arguments are that key assumptions underlying the CLERP proposals are flawed, and that the CLERP proposals could not achieve the outcomes desired of them.
It seems inevitable, however, that international standards eventually will supplant domestic standards. In the longer term, Australian standard setters seem destined to have a diminished role in the international standard setting arena.     

Reward meritocracy or nepotism: The case of independent financial advisors appointed by Chinese listed companies

As independent financial advisors, securities firms are the core intermediaries in major asset reorganization (MAR) of listed companies. Furthermore, they play the dual roles of transaction and authentication. Based on this institutional background, this paper studies how listed companies choose between industry experience (“meritocracy”) and relationships (“nepotism”). Using the MAR of A-share listed companies from 2008 to 2013 as the sample, this paper shows that higher transaction costs (i.e., greater demand for the transaction function of advisors) are related to the higher possibility of advisors with weaker relationships and more industry experience being hired. It also shows that higher suspicion of tunneling (i.e., greater demand for the signal of fairness associated with advisors’ authentication function) is related to the higher possibility of advisors with weaker relationships being hired, but it is not significantly related to whether advisors have more or less industry experience. This paper also shows that reputation has a certain governance effect on the negative consequences of relationship. For the most part, listed companies reward meritocracy but not nepotism when appointing independent financial advisors.     

Using Academic Research for the Post‐Implementation Review of Accounting Standards: A Note

The IASB and the FASB discuss formal processes for a post‐implementation review (PIR). This note contributes to this discussion in three ways. First, we argue that academics can, and should, play a significant role in a PIR. Second, we suggest a framework for empirical studies that are useful in a PIR, which enhances understandability of accounting research by standard setters. And third, we propose a process by which standard setters can take advantage of and embed academic research in a PIR.     

会计环境对企业会计准则执行效果的影响——基于应计质量的经验证据

本文旨在调查两个相互关联的问题:企业会计准则施行后财务报告应计质量是否发生了显著变化?这种变化是否与会计环境相关?我们采用经典的截面琼斯模型估计操控性应计利润,以其绝对值计量应计质量,利用2001~2009年7722个上市公司样本观察值进行了统计检验,发现企业会计准则施行后应计质量下降。在给定企业会计准则是一套高质量准则的前提下,我们进一步分析应计质量下降的原因。经验证据表明:在会计环境不同的地区,上市公司应计质量的变化存在系统性差异。这反映会计环境影响了企业会计准则的执行效果。     

论会计准则制定中的政府间博弈

会计准则具有经济后果,产生于不同会计准则的不同会计信息,会因此影响各利益集团的利益分配。因此会计准则的制定不是一种纯技术过程,而是各利益集团多次博弈达成的均衡结果。本文基于博弈论的视角,深入分析了会计准则制定中的政府间博弈,并就我国会计准则的国际趋同提出了一些建议。     

The Conceptual Framework as a Coherent System for the Development of Accounting Standards

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) visualized a conceptual accounting framework as a 'coherent system of interrelated objectives and fundamentals that can lead to consistent standards that prescribes the nature, function, and limits of financial accounting and financial statements' (FASB, 1976). To Australian standard setters, the primary purpose of the conceptual framework (CF) was only to be used as a 'guide' in developing and reviewing accounting standards (AASB, 1995, para. 5). The International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC) diminished the role of a conceptual framework even further by openly acknowledging that some standards are inconsistent with the guidelines offered by the framework (IASC, 1989 para. 12). Even though the Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) supposedly pursues a policy of harmonization of conceptual frameworks and accounting standards, there are also acknowledged inconsistencies in the conceptual frameworks of the IASC.
The aim of this article is to assess the coherence of the Australian (and IASC) conceptual framework. This analysis identifies confusion in drafting or construction of the conceptual framework, internal inconsistencies, and inconsistency with the legal framework within which business entities operate. Accordingly it is suggested that the adoption of a conceptual framework will not lead to consistent accounting standards, and inevitably the conceptual framework will lack credibility so long as it is inconsistent with legislation.     

The Impact of Adopting International Accounting Standards on the Harmonization of Accounting Practices

Over the past few decades numerous organizations have been actively participating in the efforts to improve the comparability of financial reporting. Many studies have discussed the benefits and drawbacks of comparability. This study investigated the affect on the harmonization, or comparability, of accounting practices when a sample of companies choose to use international accounting standards (IASs) when preparing financial reports.This study analyzed trends in the I index, a measure of concentration for the use of a particular accounting practice introduced by van der Tas, to determine if the choice of accounting methods by a sample of Swiss companies became more aligned with a sample of companies from three other countries. The study included a control sample of Swiss companies that did not switch from reporting using local Swiss standards during the same time period, 1988 through 1995. Four accounting practices were included; depreciation, inventory, financial statement cost basis, and consolidation practices. The practices used were compared with a sample of companies from three countries; Japan, the UK, and the US.The results indicated that across the 8-year period, the majority of the I indices comparisons were positive and statistically significant. However, the results did not support that these increases were due primarily to the adoption of IASs.     

上市银行企业会计准则实施情况分析

新会计准则施行经历了四个完整的会计年度后,对其在上市银行的实施情况进行分析研究具有重要意义。本文结合上市银行2007——2009年年报．对上市银行实施会计准则的总体情况、公允价值的实施情况、资产减值损失对损益的影响、贷款减值准备计提情况、上市银行盈利状况、商业银行实际利率法使用情况等进行了分析,努力将新会计准则的精髓应用到商业银行的会计实践中．为我国会计准则的进一步完善及投资者更好的利用会计信息提供决策参考。     

会计准则改革、实际控制人性质与盈余管理

以2003～2005、2008～2010年间沪、深A股制造业上市公司为样本,考察会计准则改革对实际控制人性质不同公司盈余管理程度的影响。结果表明,会计准则改革后,中央控股公司的盈余管理程度没有发生显著变化,地方控股公司和民营公司的盈余管理程度均显著提高,且二者盈余管理程度提高的幅度不存在显著差异。     

新企业会计准则中应收账款业务会计处理解析

今年年初,财政部新施实的新会计准则体系实现了与国际会计准则趋同,但其中某些表述与国内会计人员的阅读习惯存在差异。例如金融工具类业务专业性较强且很复杂,涉及的专业术语和特殊概念也较多,致使该类准则成为整个体系中最难理解的部分之一。应收账款是企业最常见的项目,在新会计准则中被纳入金融工具范围,而应收账款又是金融工具中较容易理解的业务,因此掌握应收账款的会计处理有助于会计人员进一步熟悉其他金融工具类业务。本文对应收账款的确认、初始计量、后续计量、资产减值等作些初步分析(为简化描述,以下所举案例均不包含销售货物…     

The Effects of Alternative Methods of Accounting for Leases – An Experimental Study

A report of an experiment testing analysts' reactions to alternative ways of reporting lease commitments. Results indicate that reporting methods affect the behaviour of financial analysts in projecting earnings, but not in share valuations.     

非货币性资产交换会计准则的国际比较研究

论文对我国先后发布的三项非货币性资产交换会计准则与国外及国际会计准则中的相关规定进行了横向比较,阐释了我国现行非货币性资产交换准则与国外相关准则的差别,分析了我国非货币性资产交换准则中存在的问题和不足,同时借鉴发达国家及国际的合理做法,并结合我国的特殊情况,针对现行准则中存在的问题提出了相应的改进建议和解决措施,以期完善我国非货币性资产交换准则。