Discuss the objectives of segmental information and the requirements for the disclosure of segmental information in annual reports.

Question 1
Segment disclosures are widely regarded as some of the most useful disclosures in financial reports because of the extent to which they disaggregate financial information into meaningful and often revealing groups.

(a) Discuss the objectives of segmental information and the requirements for the disclosure of segmental information in annual reports.

(b) Obtain the most recent annual reports for TWO FTSE 100 companies of your choice (NOTE: you need to make sure the companies chosen have more than one operational segment and thus have meaningful segment notes for analysis). Examine the segmental disclosures provided in the segment notes of the annual reports by the selected two companies and comment on the following:

i. Based on extracts from the segment notes,

how much and what segmental information is provided in the segment notes?

discuss whether the companies are in compliance with the relevant accounting standard,

discuss the similarities and differences between their disclosure practices.

ii. Comment on whether the information is useful and sufficient to allow shareholders to make informed investment decisions.

iii. Discuss the implications of your analysis and findings, such as policy implications.

Question 2
Critically discuss SIX causes of differences in accounting practices used in different countries.
You must discuss, with relevant examples, how a particular factor contributes to or leads to a particular difference in accounting practices.

Question 3
Multinational enterprises design International Transfer Pricing (ITP) systems to achieve their global objectives.

Discuss both internal and external factors affecting the ITP systems.