You manage a company that competes in an industry that is comprised of five equal-sized firms. A recent industry report indicates that a tariff on foreign imports would boost industry profits by $30 million—and that it would only take $5 million in expenditures on (legal) lobbying activities to induce Congress to implement such a tariff. Discuss your strategy for improving your company’s profits.
> Compare the degrees of prudence found in accounting for employee benefits in Germany, Italy and the United States.
> What factors have led to the establishment of multinational enterprises (MNEs)?
> Explain the differences between an allowance, a liability, a contingent liability, an obligation, a provision, an accrual, a fund and a reserve. State which set of accounting rules you have been using as the context for your answer.
> Explain the difference between ‘hedging’ and ‘hedge accounting’. In each case, what are the arguments in favor of doing them?
> ‘In recent years, the IASB has clearly been moving towards the use of current values rather than historical costs.’ Discuss.
> Explain why it is necessary to define either ‘asset’ or ‘expense’ from first principles, but not both. Why has the IASB chosen to define the former?
> ‘Substance over form is a recipe for failing to achieve comparability between financial statements of different enterprises.’ Discuss.
> Is it necessary and useful to have different valuation bases for different assets?
> Explain the various types of gains and losses included in OCI? Is it possible to identify a principle behind this?
> Access the website of GlaxoSmithKline (www.gsk.com) to explain the differences disclosed in its annual reports between US GAAP and IFRS and UK GAAP from 2004 to 2006. Could these differences (summarized in Tables 1.1 and 1.2) have been smaller if the com
> Explain the arguments for and against allowing the IASB and the FASB to compete in the provision of accounting standards. Which arguments are the stronger?
> Explain the advantages and disadvantages of writing accounting standards containing principles rather than rules.
> What factors have made possible the ‘internationalization’ of the world’s stock markets?
> Is worldwide application of IFRS going to solve the problems of international financial analysis?
> Two approaches to measuring conservatism are discussed in the chapter: the comparison of profit figures under different GAAPs; and asymmetric recognition of good and bad news. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each approach?
> How do preparers and users of annual financial statements of listed companies cope with international differences?
> Why have the UN and the OECD interested themselves in the harmonization of accounting? How have they gone about it?
> Discuss whether the standards of the IASB should be directed to all companies or to some defined subset of companies.
> What arguments are there against the process of international harmonization of accounting?
> The countries listed below are not covered in any detail in the textbook. Which of the six ‘vital’ countries (see Section 4.3.1) does each most closely resemble so far as accounting and corporate financing reporting are concerned? Explain why, referring
> Distinguish between de jure standardization and de facto standardization, giving examples of how one or both of them can be achieved.
> Distinguish between harmony, harmonization and standardization.
> Which of the main models of international classification of accounting do you prefer? Explain your reasoning.
> Which are the top three countries in respect of each of: (a) Share of the world’s top 100 companies. (b) Number of qualified accountants. (c) Market capitalization of stock exchange? Why is the answer not the same for all three questions?
> How would you judge the relative success of attempts to provide classifications in comparative international accounting?
> To what extent is differing national culture relevant to an understanding of the causes of accounting differences and therefore to the process of classification of countries?
> To what extent have the accounting classifications become irrelevant because of international harmonization?
> Do the accounting classifications suggest that there is or was such a thing as Anglo- Saxon accounting?
> When producing classifications in the field of comparative international accounting, what should one be classifying?
> If you were trying to predict which financial reporting regulations and practices would be found in various African countries, which non-accounting variables would you measure?
> Are the international differences in the formats of financial statements a major obstacle to comparing the statements?
> How do the causal factors discussed in the chapter affect corporate governance structures in different countries?
> Discuss the view that the costs of establishing and maintaining accounting standards enforcement bodies are likely in most countries to exceed the benefits.
> Why do the United States and France have stock exchange regulators as accounting standards enforcement bodies, whereas the United Kingdom does not?
> Why is there no pan-European accounting standards enforcement body in the European Union? Ought one to be established?
> Why is it difficult to establish a causal relationship between specific external factors and international differences in accounting? Discuss the methodological problems in identifying possible causes.
> Why have several countries recently introduced auditor oversight bodies? Is this a positive or a negative development?
> ‘Enforcement bodies merely duplicate the work of auditors.’ Discuss.
> A number of companies voluntarily prepare segment reports beyond what is required by regulation. Given the difficulties faced by regulators in developing rules for segment reporting, is regulation really necessary and/or desirable?
> Using segment reporting as an example, explain how standard-setters could use research when planning to impose extra disclosure requirements.
> ‘Research shows that line-of-business reporting is much more useful than geographical segmental reporting.’ Discuss.
> Discuss the view that IFRS 8 ignores the needs of many stakeholders.
> Discuss to what extent segment reporting is beneficial to different user/stakeholder groups.
> In what senses can certain aspects of auditing be described as ‘international’?
> Why do auditing standards differ internationally?
> Discuss the effect that the growth of multinational enterprises has had on audit firms.
> Do international differences in the rules for the calculation of taxable income cause accounting differences, or is the influence the other way round?
> What major contributions to accounting and its terminology have been made historically by the following countries: Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States and Japan?
> Use the following one-shot, normal-form game to answer the following questions. a. Find each player’s dominant strategy, if it exists. b. Find each player’s secure strategy. c. Find the Nash equilibrium.
> An office manager is concerned with declining productivity. Despite the fact that she regularly monitors her clerical staff four times each day—at 9:00 am, 11:00 am, 1:00 pm, and again at 3:00 pm—office productivity has declined 30 percent since she assu
> Japanese officials are considering a new tariff on imported pork products from the United States in an attempt to reduce Japan’s reliance on U.S. pork. Due to political pressure, the U.S. International Trade Representative’s (ITR) office is also consider
> Both Google and Amazon are major players in the smart home market, using their own internally developed smart home control system (Google Assistant and Alexa, respectively). Suppose each is considering a new round of investments into their smart home off
> You are the manager of Gear Net and must decide how many Internet hubs to produce to maximize your firm’s profit. Gear Net and its only rival (Net Works) sell dual-speed Internet hubs that are identical from consumers’
> You are a pricing manager at Argyle Inc.—a medium-sized firm that recently introduced a new product into the market. Argyle’s only competitor is Baker Company, which is significantly smaller than Argyle. The management
> At a time when demand for ready-to-eat cereal was stagnant, a spokesperson for the cereal maker Kellogg’s was quoted as saying, “ . . . for the past several years, our individual company growth has come out of the other fellow’s hide.” Kellogg’s has been
> You are the manager of a firm that manufactures front and rear windshields for the automobile industry. Due to economies of scale in the industry, entry by new firms is not profitable. Toyota has asked your company and your only rival to simultaneously s
> Price comparison services on the Internet (as well as “shopbots”) are a popular way for retailers to advertise their products and a convenient way for consumers to simultaneously obtain price quotes from several firms selling an identical product. Suppos
> Suppose the own price elasticity of market demand for retail gasoline is −0.8, the Rothschild index is 0.5, and a typical gasoline retailer enjoys sales of $1.5 million annually. What is the price elasticity of demand for a representative gasoline retail
> Suppose a UAW labor contract with General Dynamics is being renegotiated. Some of the many issues on the table include job security, health benefits, and wages. If you are an executive in charge of human resource issues at General Dynamics, would you be
> Coca-Cola and PepsiCo are the leading competitors in the market for cola products. In 1960 Coca-Cola introduced Sprite, which today is among the worldwide leaders in the lemon-lime soft drink market and ranks in the top 10 among all soft drinks worldwide
> Suppose Toyota and Honda must decide whether to make a new breed of side-impact airbags standard equipment on all models. Side-impact airbags raise the price of each automobile by $1,000. If both firms make side-impact airbags standard equipment, each co
> While there is a degree of differentiation between major grocery chains like Albertsons and Kroger, the regular offering of sale prices by both firms for many of their products provides evidence that these firms engage in price competition. For markets w
> Using the same payoff matrix as in question 9, suppose this game is infinitely repeated and that the interest rate is sufficiently “low.” Identify trigger strategies that permit players 1 and 2 to earn equilibrium payoffs of 140 and 180, respectively, in
> Use the following payoff matrix to answer the following questions. Suppose this is a one-shot game: a. Determine the dominant strategy for each player. If such strategies do not exist, explain why not. b. Determine the secure strategy for each player. If
> Use the following payoff matrix for a one-shot game to answer the accompanying questions. a. Determine the Nash equilibrium outcomes that arise if the players make decisions independently, simultaneously, and without any communication. Which of these out
> Use the following extensive-form game to answer the following questions. a. List the feasible strategies for player 1 and player 2. b. Identify the Nash equilibria to this game. c. Find the subgame perfect equilibrium.
> Consider a two-player, sequential-move game where each player can choose to play right or left. Player 1 moves first. Player 2 observes player 1’s actual move and then decides to move right or left. If player 1 moves right, player 1 receives $0 and playe
> Provide a real-world example of a market that approximates each oligopoly setting, and explain your reasoning. a. Cournot oligopoly. b. Stackelberg oligopoly. c. Bertrand oligopoly.
> An industry consists of three firms with sales of $225,000, $45,000, and $315,000. a. Calculate the Herfindahl-Hirschman index (HHI). b. Calculate the four-firm concentration ratio (C4). c. Based on the FTC and DOJ Horizontal Merger Guidelines described
> Consider a Bertrand oligopoly consisting of four firms that produce an identical product at a marginal cost of $140. Analysts estimate that the inverse market demand for this product is P = 400 − 5Q. (LO2) a. Determine the equilibrium level of output in
> The inverse demand for a homogeneous-product Stackelberg duopoly is P = 16,000 − 4Q. The cost structures for the leader and the follower, respectively, are CL(QL) = 4,000QL and CF(QF) = 6,000QF. (LO2, LO3) a. What is the follower’s reaction function? b.
> The following diagram illustrates the reaction functions and isoprofit curves for a homogeneous- product duopoly in which each firm produces at constant marginal cost. a. If your rival produces 50 units of output, what is your optimal level of output? b.
> Analysts have estimated inverse market demand in a homogeneous-product Cournot duopoly to be P = 200 − 3(Q1 + Q2). They estimate costs to be C1(Q1) = 26Q1 and C2(Q2) = 32Q2. a. Determine the reaction function for each firm. b. Calculate each firm’s equil
> The graph that accompanies this question illustrates two demand curves for a firm operating in a differentiated-product oligopoly. Initially, the firm charges a price of $60 and produces 10 units of output. One of the demand curves is relevant when rival
> Your firm competes in a local duopoly. You’ve hired consultants to examine how your rival responds to changes in your prices. To do this, over a period of time, your consultants helped your firm to experiment with different price points and observe your
> You are a new entrant in a market with just one incumbent, who sells a roughly equivalent product. You initially take on the follower role when it comes to choosing the amount of your product to manufacture. In researching your market, youâ€&#
> In the late 1990s, Vanguard Airlines operated as a low-cost carrier, offering low prices and limited services, out of Kansas City, Missouri. Not long after its inception, Vanguard began offering a significant number of flights based out of Midway Interna
> In an attempt to increase tax revenues, legislators in several states have introduced legislation that would increase state excise taxes. Examine the impact of such an increase on the equilibrium prices paid and quantities consumed by consumers in market
> Jones is the manager of an upscale clothing store in a shopping mall that contains only two such stores. While these two competitors do not carry the same brands of clothes, they serve a similar clientele. Jones was recently notified that the mall is goi
> Ten firms compete in a market to sell product X. The total sales of all firms selling the product are $3 million. Ranking the firms’ sales from highest to lowest, we find the top four firms’ sales to be $425,000, $385,000, $320,000, and $290,000, respect
> PC Connection and CDW are two online retailers that compete in an Internet market for digital cameras. While the products they sell are similar, the firms attempt to differentiate themselves through their service policies. Over the last couple of months,
> During the 1980s, most of the world’s supply of lysine was produced by a Japanese company named Ajinomoto. Lysine is an essential amino acid that is an important livestock feed component. At this time, the United States imported most of the world’s suppl
> You are the manager of Taurus Technologies, and your sole competitor is Spyder Technologies. The two firms’ products are viewed as identical by most consumers. The relevant cost functions are C (Qi) = 4Qi, and the inverse market demand curve for this uni
> The market for a standard-sized cardboard container consists of two firms: Composite Box and Fiberboard. As the manager of Composite Box, you enjoy a patented technology that permits your company to produce boxes faster and at a lower cost than Fiberboar
> You are the manager of a firm that competes against four other firms by bidding for government contracts. While you believe your product is better than the competition’s, the government purchasing agent views the products as identical and purchases from
> Semi-Salt Industries began its operation in 1975 and remains the only firm in the world that produces and sells commercial-grade polyglutamate. While virtually anyone with a degree in college chemistry could replicate the firm’s formula, due to the relat
> The opening statement on the website of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) says its members seek “. . . to secure an efficient, economic and regular supply of petroleum to consumers, a steady income to producers and a fair return on
> You are the manager of the only firm worldwide that specializes in exporting fish products to Japan. Your firm competes against a handful of Japanese firms that enjoy a significant first-mover advantage. Recently, one of your Japanese customers has calle
> The Hull Petroleum Company and Inverted V are retail gasoline franchises that compete in a local market to sell gasoline to consumers. Hull and Inverted V are located across the street from each other and can observe the prices posted on each other’s mar
> You are the manager of BlackSpot Computers, which competes directly with Condensed Computers to sell high-powered computers to businesses. From the two businesses’ perspectives, the two products are indistinguishable. The large investment required to bui
> Suppose that the U.S. Congress passes legislation that imposes a one-time lump-sum tariff on the product that a foreign firm exports to the United States. a. What happens to the foreign firm’s marginal cost curve as a result of the lump-sum tariff? b. Wi
> Ford executives announced that the company would extend its most dramatic consumer incentive program in the company’s long history—the Ford Drive America Program. The program provides consumers with either cash back or zero percent financing for new Ford
> Suppose a single firm produces all of the output in a contestable market. Analysts determine that the market inverse demand function is P = 150 − 2Q, and the firm’s cost function is C (Q) = 4Q. Determine the firm’s equilibrium price and corresponding pro
> Determine whether each of the following scenarios best reflects features of Sweezy, Cournot, Stackelberg, or Bertrand duopoly: a. Neither manager expects her own output decision to impact the other manager’s output decision. b. Each manager charges a pri
> Consider a homogeneous-product duopoly where each firm initially produces at a constant marginal cost of $200 and there are no fixed costs. Determine what would happen to each firm’s equilibrium output and profits if firm 2’s marginal cost increased to $
> Two firms compete in a market to sell a homogeneous product with inverse demand function P = 600 − 3Q. Each firm produces at a constant marginal cost of $300 and has no fixed costs. Use this information to compare the output levels and profits in setting
> You are the manager of a monopolistically competitive firm, and your demand and cost functions are estimated as Q = 36 − 4P and C(Q) = 4 + 4Q + Q2. (LO1, LO3, LO5) a. Find the inverse demand function for your firm’s product. b. Determine the profit-maxim
> The accompanying diagram shows the demand, marginal revenue, and marginal cost of a monopolist. a. Determine the profit-maximizing output and price. b. What price and output would prevail if this firm’s product were sold by price-taking
> You are the manager of a firm that produces a product according to the cost function C(qi) = 160 + 58qi − 6qi 2 + qi 3. Determine the short-run supply function if: a. You operate a perfectly competitive business. b. You operate a monopoly. c. You operate
> You are the manager of a monopoly, and your analysts have estimated your demand and costs functions as P = 300 − 3Q and C(Q) = 1,500 + 2Q2, respectively. a. What price–quantity combination maximizes your firm’s profits? b. Calculate the maximum profits.
