国际会计第七版课后答案第三章.docx

1、国际会计第七版课后答案第三章Chapter 3Comparative Accounting: EuropeDiscussion Questions1.Regulating and enforcing financial reporting is a government function in France. The National Accounting Board (CNC) and the Accounting Regulation committee (CRC) set accounting standards under the jurisdiction of the Ministr

2、y of Economy and Finance. The Financial Markets Authority (AMF) ensures compliance with French accounting rules (for listed companies). It is also a government agency. Public and private sector bodies are involved in the regulation and enforcement of financial reporting in Germany. The German Accoun

3、ting Standards Board is a private sector body that develops German reporting standards for consolidated financial statements. However, German law (the HGB) governs financial statements at the individual company level. Enforcement also involves private and public sector bodies. The Financial Reportin

4、g Enforcement Panel is a private sector body that investigates compliance and relies on companies to voluntarily correct any problems that it finds. Matters that cannot be resolved are referred to the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority, a government agency, for final resolution. The regulation

5、and enforcement of financial reporting is in the public sector in the Czech Republic. The Ministry of Finance is responsible for setting accounting principles and it also oversees the Czech Securities Commission which is responsible for enforcing compliance with Czech requirements. Some observers qu

6、estion the effectiveness of the Czech system. A private sector group is responsible for regulating financial reporting in the Netherlands. The Dutch Accounting Standards Board issues guidelines on acceptable accounting principles. Enforcement is handled by the Enterprise Chamber, a special accountin

7、g court. It rules on whether companies have used acceptable accounting practices, but only after an interested party has brought a complaint. The Financial Reporting Supervision Division of the Netherlands Authority for Financial Markets is responsible for enforcing reporting requirements for listed

8、 companies. Regulation of financial reporting is in the private sector in the United Kingdom. The Accounting Standards Board determines Financial Reporting Standards. The authority of the ASB is set out in the law. Two groups are responsible for enforcing financial reporting standards, one in the pr

9、ivate sector and the other in the public sector. The Financial Reporting Review Panel (private sector) and the Department of Trade and Industry (public sector) can investigate complaints about departures from accounting standards. If necessary, they can go to court to force companies to revise its f

10、inancial statements.2.Given the requirement that all EU listed companies must use International Financial Reporting Standards in their consolidated financial statements, all five countries follow fair presentation principles for this group of companies financial statements. The difference among the

11、countries comes with listed companies individual financial statements and with non-listed companies. The overall picture is quite confusing. At the individual company level, France and Germany require local accounting standards. Both can be characterized as legal compliance, conservative, and tax-dr

12、iven. Individual company financial statements in the Netherlands and United Kingdom may use either local requirements or IFRS. However, in either case the result is fair presentation financial statements. The Czech Republic requires IFRS in listed companies individual company financial statements, s

13、o the result is that they are fair presentation. In all five countries, non-listed companies may use either IFRS or local accounting standards for their consolidated financial statements. As characterized above, the resulting financial statements will be quite different for German and French compani

14、es. Czech accounting standards are mostly fair presentation, but there is still some tax influence. Thus, the resulting financial statements can also be different depending on the choice that companies make. Finally, non-listed companies individual financial statements must be prepared under local a

15、ccounting standards in the Czech Republic, France, and Germany. Local accounting standards or IFRS may be used by this group of companies in the Netherlands and United Kingdom. 3.The recently established auditor oversight bodies discussed in this chapter are:a.France Haut Conseil du Commissariat aux

16、 Comptes (High Council of External Auditors)b.Netherlands Netherlands Authority for Financial Marketsc.United Kingdom Professional Oversight Board The oversight body in France is in a government agency, while the one in the U.K. is a private sector body. The Dutch body is an autonomous administrativ

17、e authority under the Ministry of Finance. They are a response to recent accounting scandals and represent efforts to the tighten control over auditors. 4. Tax legislation is a significant influence on local accounting requirements in France and Germany. It is unimportant in the Netherlands and Unit

18、ed Kingdom. Tax legislation has limited influence in the Czech Republic. Given that Czech accounting is still evolving, tax law can be expected to fill in areas where accounting standards are missing. 5. Consolidated financial statements are the statements of a group of companies under common manage

19、ment or control. Individual company financial statements are the statements of the separate legal entities (parent and subsidiaries) that make up the group. EU countries prohibit IFRS for individual company financial statements when these statements are the basis for taxation and dividend distributi

20、ons. They are “legal compliance” countries (see Chapter 2) and individual company financial statements must comply with the law. Other countries permit or require IFRS for individual company financial statements because they are “fair presentation” countries (Chapter 2). Individual company financial

21、 statements are not the basis for taxation or dividends. Local accounting standards follow fair presentation principles. 6. There is no conclusive evidence linking high levels of legal accounting and reporting requirements in a country and corresponding high quality levels of financial reporting. It

22、 appears that high legal requirements (for example, in France and Germany) lead to a certain amount of professional or bureaucratic inertia and form over substance thinking in financial reporting. Indeed, countries with significant state regulation of accounting and accountants are generally not amo

23、ng the innovative accounting leadership countries. If anything, comparatively high levels of legal requirements appear to depress the overall quality of reporting. 7.This quote paraphrases a statement in the preamble to the charter establishing the German Accounting Standards Committee. We agree. Pr

24、ivate sector initiatives (self-regulation) have been more successful than governmental initiatives in developing financial reporting regulations for national and international capital markets. Two noteworthy examples are the Accounting Standards Board in the U.K. (discussed in Chapter 3) and the Fin

25、ancial Accounting Standards Board in the U.S. (discussed in Chapter 4). Both have been flexible and adaptable in developing reporting standards in response to new circumstances. They are arguably the premier national standard setting bodies in the world. It is also noteworthy that Germany and Japan

26、(Chapter 4) have recently moved to establish private sector organizations. Chapter 8 discusses international harmonization and convergence. There, the work of the International Accounting Standards Board and the European Union are discussed. The EU was not effective in establishing standards for cap

27、ital markets and has now endorsed the efforts of the IASB. 8. Existing French companies legislation in the form of the Plan Comptable Gnral and Code de Commerce have the greatest influence on day-to-day French accounting practices. The two other authoritative sources of financial accounting standard

28、s and practices have comparatively modest or sporadic influence. 9. The statement is true. The German Accounting Standards Board is a private-sector body like the FASB (U.S.), ASB (U.K.), and IASB. The process for establishing standards is also similar. Working groups examine issues and make recomme

29、ndations to the Board. These groups represent a broad constituency. GASB deliberations follow a due process and meetings are open. 10.Accounting requirements in the Czech Republic are based on EU Directives. Examples noted in the chapter are the following: a.True and fair view embodied in the Accoun

30、tancy Act. b.Required audit. c.Statement of cash flows not a required financial statement (though it is required in the notes). d.Disclosures of employee information and revenues by segment. e.Consolidated financial statements required. f.Abbreviated reporting requirements for small companies.g.Note

31、s include accounting policies.h.Listed companies use IFRS in consolidated financial statements. The accounting measurements discussed are also consistent with EU Directives, for example, the requirement for the equity method. 11.The Dutch Enterprise Chamber of the Court of Justice of Amsterdam helps

32、 ensure that filed or published Dutch financial statements conform to all applicable laws. Shareholders, employees, trade unions, or public prosecutors may bring proceedings to the Chamber by alleging that officially filed or published financial statements do not conform to applicable requirements. The Enterprise Chamber carries out its mission by determining whether the allegations of deficient financial reporting are true and how material such deficiencies are. Depending upon the case, the Chamber may require that financial statements be modified or it may seek penalties through the Court o