Week 4 acc5301

Comparing U.S and International Accounting Standards Name Instructor Institution Date Introduction The accounting field has so often been plagued by financial malpractices such as fraud, which result in the loss of great fortunes by both organizations and the individuals investing in them. Accounting principles are usually set so as to ensure integrity, accountability and transparency in the financial field. This also ensures a smooth running of businesses and any financial transactions. Accounting principles are usually guided by a set of rules and procedures that is provided by the Financial Accounting and Standards Board (FASB), known as the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). It is upon these accounting rules that all business transactions and financial statements are based on; both within the U.S. as well as the rest of the world. It creates uniformity in accounting, thereby making it easier to streamline the accounting field. There is however, some discrepancy between the accounting standards in the U.S. compared to the rest of the world, calling for a comparison of three main ones. The companies to be used in this comparison are Samsung and Apple, due to their global reach. Analysis The role of the FASB, as initially noted, is to come up with a set of accounting standards as well as maintaining them. In the U.S., the Accounting Standards Council (ASC) is the main caretaker of GAAP. There is however, a number of accounting legislations that regularly get passed, which also affect the accounting standards and practices. This is basically geared to ensure that accounting practices are transparent, analytical and therefore free of any foul play such as fraud. As a result, it is commonplace to see businesses in the U.S. utilizing more than one accounting principle in order to constantly update their financial statements. With this uniformity across the country, it becomes easier to not only report financial information by a given business but also properly account for every bit of information in those reports. A look at the name, location, and accounting standards used for each business. Apple and Samsung are the two leading electronic companies in the world. Not only are they competitors but also trailblazers in the technological field. They have for a long time continued setting the trend in producing great products such as mobile phones, computers, integrated circuits, chips and headphones, using cutting edge technology. Apple is based in America, even though it outsources some of its production in China. In addition to the manufacture of gadgets such as iPhones and Mac computers, it has also tried its hands on software production. The two companies have ensured that they continue diversifying their business, so as to maintain or increase their revenue streams. * Comparison of Financial Statements Looking at their financial statements, the two companies operate on different accounting principles. First, while Samsung uti...