The Implementation of FASB Statement No. 33 "Financial Reporting and Changing Prices" by Large Industrial Corporations

Date of Submission

1982

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science in Accounting

Department

Accounting

Advisor

John Listio

LCSH

Financial statements

Call No. at the Univ. of New Haven Library

AS 36 .N29 Acc. 1983 no.1

Abstract

This thesis was based on the premise that Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 33, "Financial Reporting and Changing Prices," was an experiment. Therefore, the supplemental inflation disclosures in the annual reports of fifty-five firms, randomly selected from the 1981 list of Fortune 500 industrial corporations, were examined and compared. The purpose was to determine: 1) how the requirements of FASB Statement No. 33 were being implemented; 2) the attitudes of management towards the requirements and the resulting disclosures; 3) whether the inflation adjusted data showed significant variations from the historical cost information; 4) whether the benefits outweighed the increased costs of the additional disclosures; 5) whether the information was readable; and 6) whether it was useful in making inter- and intra-company comparisons.

The major conclusions of this study were: 1) there are still many unresolved issues that require further experience with the inflation adjusted data; 2) in order to gain this experience in using these disclosures for decision-making purposes, it will be necessary to have a more standardized presentation of the data and guidelines for interpreting the new information; 3) the cost issue was not a problem for large industrial corporations; 4) the impact of inflation could be significant, depending on the individual company; and 5) some auditor involvement would be desirable to ensure that the requirements of Statement No. 33 are fulfilled.

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