ASSIGNMENT TASKS

CORPORATE REGULATION

(i) Do you own research and critically discuss whether the financial accounting and reporting should be regulated or manager should be allowed to disclose financial accounting information voluntarily.

ACCOUNTING STANDARD SETTING

(ii) Do your own research and critically explain how the Australian Accounting Standards Board take part in the global accounting standard setting process (i.e. in setting IFRS). Why is the IFRS set by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) not compulsory for the member countries of IASB?

OWNERS EQUITY

Select 4 public limited companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) that are in the same industry. Go to the website of your selected companies. Then go to the Investor Relations section of the website. This section may be called, "Investors", "Shareholder Information" or similar name.

In this section, go to your firms' annual reports and save to your computer your firms' latest annual reports consecutively for last four years. Do not use your firms' interim financial statements or their concise financial statements. Please read the financial statements (balance sheet, income statement, statement of changes in owner's equity, cash flow statement) very carefully. Also please read the relevant footnotes of your firms' financial statements carefully and include information from these footnotes in your answer.

You need to do the following tasks:

(iii) From your firms' financial statements, list each item of equity and write your  understanding of each item. Discuss any changes in each item of equity for your firms over the past four years articulating the reasons for the change.

(iv) Provide a comparative analysis of the debt and equity position of the four firms that you have selected.

Please prepare the above answers in your own words.