International Financial Reporting Standards : A Practical Guide, 5th Edition

Abstract

The publication of this fifth edition
 coincides with the convergence in accounting standards that
 has been a feature of the international landscape since the
 global financial crisis of 1998. The events of that year
 prompted several international organizations, including the
 World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, to launch a
 cooperative initiative to strengthen the global financial
 architecture and to seek a longer-term solution to the lack
 of transparency in financial information. A conscious
 decision has been made to focus on the needs of executives
 and financial analysts in the private and public sectors who
 might not have a strong accounting background. This
 publication summarizes each standard so managers and
 analysts can quickly obtain a broad overview of the key
 issues. Detailed discussion of certain topics has been
 excluded to maintain the overall objective of providing a
 useful tool to managers and financial analysts. In addition
 to the short summaries, most chapters contain basic examples
 that emphasize the practical application of some key
 concepts in a particular standard. This text provides the
 tools to enable an executive without a technical accounting
 background to: (1) participate in an informed manner in
 discussions relating to the appropriateness or application
 of a particular standard in a given situation, and (2)
 evaluate the effect that the application of the principles
 of a given standard will have on the financial results and
 position of a division or of an entire enterprise.