1 Matakuliah: F0142/Akuntansi Internasional Tahun: 2006 Session 07 Financial Reporting and Changing Prices.

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Matakuliah : F0142/Akuntansi Internasional

Tahun : 2006

Session 07Financial Reporting and

Changing Prices

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Inflation

• Inflation has had a devastating effect on many countries– Brazil and Russia – as high as 2,000%– 1970s in the U.K. – 25%

• Some companies are using other methods of accounting to combat the effects of inflation– BP uses replacement costs – More companies will likely follow BP’s lead

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Impact of Inflation on the Corporation

• Assets become devalued

• Liabilities become less expensive to pay off

• Interest rates on loans increase with inflation

• Income can be overstated as old costs are matched with new revenues

• Shareholders could demand more dividends and employees could demand higher wages

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Accounting Measurement Alternatives

• General purchasing power accounting– Includes all systems designed to maintain the

purchasing power of capital or equity– Accounts for changes in the level of prices– Concerned with the value of money– Other names include

• Constant dollar accounting (U.S.)• General price level accounting (U.S.)• Current purchasing power accounting (U.K.)

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Accounting Measurement Alternatives

• Current value accounting– Includes all systems designed to account for current

values or changes in specific prices– Concerned with the cost of specific assets– Types of accounting include

• Current cost accounting

• Replacement value accounting

• Current exit price accounting

• Real value accounting is a combination of current value and general purchasing power accounting

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General Purchasing Power Accounting

• The monetary unit of measure should be uniform while retaining the basis of measurement used in the financial statements (historical cost)

• All items except financial assets and liabilities (cash, receivables, payables) are restated to reflect common purchasing power

• Previous year’s accounts are also updated to provide comparability

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General Purchasing Power Accounting

• Example – General price level increased by 15%

during the year

– A machine purchased on January 1 cost $10,000

– End-of-year purchasing power to buy machine on Dec. 31= $10,000 + ($10,000 x 0.15) = $11,500

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Current Value Accounting

• Income is not earned until the company has maintained its capital in current value terms

• Current cost (replacement cost) method– Should the same asset or one performing a similar

function with new technology be used?

• Current exit price method– Values assets at what they could be sold for, less cost

to complete and sell the items– Going-concern concept – asset is valued at estimated

sales price on normal completion of production

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Current Value Accounting

• Results in holding gains and losses that are– Recognized on the income statement– Reflected on the balance sheet as a capital

adjustment account

• Current values are determined by– Suppliers’ lists (inventory)– Construction cost indices (PP&E)– Appraisal values (fixed assets)

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Current Value Accounting

Example

Sales = $1,000,000Current COGS = $900,000Historical COGS = $700,000

Operating gross profit $100,000 for current cost method$300,000 for historical cost method, part of which is due to holding during a period of price increase

Realized holding gain = $900,000 - $700,000 = $200,000

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Real Value Accounting

Example

Value of asset Beginning = $150,000Current value at year end = $190,000GPP value at year end = $165,000

Total holding gain $190,000 - $150,000 = $40,000

Real holding gain$190,000 - $165,000 = $25,000

***What matters is the net impact of prices directly affecting the corporation relative to the average level of prices affecting the GPP of money!!!

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International Financial Reporting Standards

• IAS 6 (1977)– A brief narrowing of options available to deal

with inflation

• IAS 15, Information Reflecting the Effects of Changing Prices– Recognized the two major methods (GPP or

current cost), but did not champion one or the other

– Required information on the effects of price changes if the historical cost method is used

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International Financial Reporting Standards

• IAS 15 suggestions for price change info– The amount of the adjustment to or adjusted amount of

depreciation of PP&E– The amount of the adjustment to or the adjusted amount of

cost of sales– The adjustments relating to monetary items, the effect of

borrowing, or equity interests when those adjustments are used in determining income

– The overall effect on income of adjustments and any items reflecting the effects of changing prices

– Current cost of PP&E of inventories– Methods adopted to compute information used in the

preceding items and any indices used• IAS 15 was withdrawn in 2003

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International Financial Reporting Standards

• IAS 29 (1989)– Focuses on hyperinflationary economies

• 100% inflation over 3 years

– Requires restatements for GPP changes regardless of previous treatment

• IAS 16 (revised in 1998)– Current value approach is permitted for

PP&E– “Fair value” is used– Regular revaluations are required

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Comparative National Regulation and Practice

• U.K.– SSAP 16, requiring current cost accounting,

was issued and withdrawn due to lower inflation

– Only a few companies now provide current cost disclosures

– Some companies revalue their PP&E at market values

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Comparative National Regulation and Practice

• U.S.– Accounting Series Release 190 required

disclosure of replacement cost info– SFAS 33 required disclosure on both GPP

and a current cost basis– SFAS 33 made an array of information

available

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Comparative National Regulation and Practice

• Australia, Canada, and New Zealand– Developments are more tentative than in U.S.– Similar to U.S. current cost system

• Continental Europe– Much less enthusiasm for inflation accounting– No professional standards on the subject

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Comparative National Regulation and Practice

• Brazil– Inflation accounting used as early as the 1950s– Company law in 1976 required indexation approach

to restate historical costs in terms of current purchasing power

– With reduced inflation levels, requirement was withdrawn in 1996

• Argentina– Inflation accounting introduced was the accounting

profession– 1972 – GPP financial statements were

recommended– Recommendation withdrawn in 1995 due to low

inflation

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Comparative National Regulation and Practice

• Current Value Accounting in Holland– Some firms use current cost method– Some use partial current cost statements or historical

cost statements with supplementary disclosures

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Comparative National Regulation and Practice

• Theodore Limperg – father of replacement value – Focused on the relationship between economics

and accounting

– Believed that income is a function of revenue and replacement value instead of historical costs

– Believed that current value info should be used by all decision makers

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Comparative National Regulation and Practice

• Philips– First used current value techniques in 1936– Used current value approach in 1952 for

financial reporting purposes– Departments of the company determined

current values of inventory, equipment, and fixed assets

– The effect of current value changes showed in cost of goods sold and depreciation expense

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Comparative National Regulation and Practice

• Philips– Brink (1992) showed that Philips used

replacement value techniques to enhance profits

– The company used inventory value reductions and the gearing adjustment in hyperinflationary countries

– Recorded a loss of 4.24 billion guilders in 1990, which led to the demise of the replacement value system in 1992

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Problems and Prospects

• Inflationary accounting is likely to remain a hot topic for the foreseeable future

• Some South American countries in hyperinflation use GPP accounting

• Some European companies still make voluntary current value disclosures

• No current cost accounting regulations exist in the U.K. or the U.S.

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Problems and Prospects

• Controversy remains over – The gearing adjustment– Treatment of gains and losses on monetary

items– The use of indices with respect to foreign subs– Verification of current costs in industries with

rapid technological change

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Problems and Prospects

• Future experimentation with price change accounting systems is hoped for

• The usefulness of exit prices and cash flows may be better appreciated in the future