Replies to post #146946 on Sulja Bros. Building Supplies, Ltd (SLJB)

[USAFpatriot]

Good post. I had the feeling all along this was causing the delay in AF,s and I still do.

[janniebgood]

Phyllo - GREAT find and seemingly very appropriate to our situation given that I believe our audit went through KPMG's Cairo office. Certainly would lend credence to what Petar claimed caused the delay.

[WhiteSands]

A must read!!! Great find, Phyllo.

All the people that try to pin ulterior motives on Petar should read this ... and take a look inwards. Ouch.

[Slojab]

I sure hope Mike Rake has an unlisted phone number!

[Grande25]

I'll admit it, no clue what "rues" meant:

rue1 (r) Pronunciation Key
v. rued, ru·ing, rues
v. tr.
To feel regret, remorse, or sorrow for.

v. intr.
To feel regret, remorse, or sorrow.

[Dont wanna be poor]

In my opinion this summs up all the problems...Lets not forget that SLJB is prob not the only KPMG client and must wait their turn in whatever the process steps are....everyone will be rewarded imho

[FrankieJ]

Holy Underwear Batman!!! That's just what PV said was the reason for the delay in his PR!

[bliz82]

Not more proof that maybe our CEO has been telling the truth all along. lol!

[Stock H.O.G.]

phyll & STAX: Great find guys! Thanks. Might be a good idea to post it on the Blog/Q&A too.

I thought I was done for the weekend on IHUB, but couldn't resist.

[mrdoor]

Very good piece of information. Makes things much clearer now. Good job!

[Stock H.O.G.]

This find alone will provide much investor confidence. Based on that, I predict the PPS will be driven up and up and up prior to the unvailing of the AFs. I think we'll see the upper teens before the end of next week. Not pumping, just stating my opinion.

[J.C.N.]

phyllostachys,
Very nice find. Much appreciated.
Brent

[Dont wanna be poor]

!!!!POST OF THE WEEKEND!!!!!!!!!!!


Great job guys this puts it all into perspective......GO SLJB...

[Shomidamoni]

HOLY GUACAMOLE! Very very interesting. Phenomenal find Phyll.

[OLDSCHOOL110]

AWESOME Find and imo explains why the delay in the AF's
all imo

[Dont wanna be poor]

!!!!POST OF THE WEEKEND!!!!!!!!!!!


Great job guys this puts it all into perspective......GO SLJB...

[greenspirit]

phyllos, here is another article discussing the issue in a little more detail.

KPMG chief calls for convergence and openness
http://www.accaglobal.com/news/general/2289847?view=Centenary
Mike Rake, chairman of KPMG International

Major markets need to agree principles of regulation and governance, rather than competing with, and superseding, each other, Mike Rake, chairman of KPMG International, told an ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) centenary event today.

Mr Rake, speaking at the ACCA's UK centenary seminar in London, said that with the spotlight on accountants and business as never before, they needed to act responsibly and hit back against charges of greed and self-interest to win back trust if capitalism was to survive. Improved dialogue between the profession, governments and investors was needed.

He added that the accountancy profession would not be forgiven if it did not work fully for IFRS convergence with US GAAP. "There is no good reason why there cannot be a global set of accounting protocols', he said.

The Right Honourable Chris Patten gave the after dinner address, he is pictured here with ACCA’s Deputy President, Christopher Forster

But Mr Rake said that business and the profession were suffering because of conflicting regulatory frameworks in which different regimes were trying to "out Sarbanes-Oxley each other. If the EU reciprocates by making US companies register with each European state in multiple languages it will not help business efficiency' he said.

The over-complexity of regulation post-Sarbanes-Oxley, while understandable, had now led to audit reports becoming over-complicated and of less use to investors, he said. "Audit Reports and financial statements have become close to incomprehensible to anyone except the experts and need to be simplified in terms of presenting company results", Mr Rake said.

Vera di Palma, a past president of ACCA, and the first female president of a professional body

Auditors should consider giving more information when they resign from an audit, and be more open about their risk management and client acceptance procedures, he said. And improved dialogue between accounting firms and governments was needed in terms of tax planning, so that sensible boundaries could be established to balance the need of companies to compete and exchequers to protect state revenues.

The award-winning Lloyd's building in the City of London

The KPMG Chairman said the move to quarterly reporting had put additional pressure on companies to constantly report increased profits. He said analysts needed to be more understanding of longer-term performance not just short-term figures, and said the Enron and Parmalat scandals had shown that investors and banks had just an important role as accountants in improving confidence in financial reporting.

Reflecting the theme of ACCA's Centenary year, responsibility, Mr Rake called for courage among CEOs to set the right ethical stance for their companies, which would permeate through. The success stories of business in the 21st century he said would be those that gave real meaning to corporate social responsibility, for which there was a strong business, as well as moral, case. Accounting scandals had occurred because of fundamental failures in corporate culture, as well as in internal controls he said.

[greenspirit]

And another from KPMG's webstite...

KPMG News

So far, so good...
IFRS implementation surprisingly smooth so far - but critical issues remain to be resolved

06 June 2006

A new report from KPMG International reveals that senior accounting, regulatory and industry figures from around the world believe that a number of key issues remain to be resolved in order to confirm the success of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) project - though they have been surprised at how smoothly the implementation of IFRS has gone to date.

KPMG International's report - International Financial Reporting Standards: Views on a financial reporting revolution - consists of interviews with standard-setters, regulators, CFOs, analysts and auditors from around the world, including several well-known figures in the region.

The report highlights some critical issues ahead, including:

- US convergence - how will the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) react to the first full IFRS results as they are issued? A series of requested restatements could be a major blow to progress towards mutual recognition between IFRS and US GAAP, and the ultimate quest for one global accounting language
- Consistency of interpretation - how can the financial community ensure that IFRS is adopted and interpreted in a consistent manner across borders and between different industry sectors?
- Rules versus principles - IFRS is a principles-based system but will the need for consistency result in a movement towards a more rigid rules-based (US-style) approach?
- Fair value - some preparers are still uncomfortable with the direction that fair value accounting is taking, and question the relevance of some of the numbers it produces.
- Complexity of accounts - accounts are meant to serve investors and yet they are becoming more difficult to read. Some of those interviewed believe that the greater complexity more accurately reflects reality, and that the numbers bring greater rewards once they are understood, while others are more sceptical.

Despite these issues, many interviewees comment on how smooth the process has been so far. According to Sir David Tweedie, Chairman of the International Accounting Standards Board, implementation of IFRS to date has gone "surprisingly well", and Robert Herz, Chairman of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), the US standard-setting body, describes it as "an incredible event in the history of accounting."

Local respondents Charles Grieve, Director, Corporate Finance with the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission and Martin Cubbon, Group Finance Director of Swire Pacific in Hong Kong, agree that the alignment of local accounting standards with IFRS has gone smoothly despite the complexity of the new standards. However, while Charles Grieve feels that the figures under IFRS have greater integrity, Martin Cubbon is concerned that they are being asked to produce information which he feels is increasingly irrelevant to management, investors and other stakeholders.

Looking forward, many have a positive view of the future. In five years' time, according to Michael Hughes, Global Head of Audit at KPMG and partner in KPMG's UK firm, there is a good chance that we will see "convergence at a more sedate pace. IFRS bedded down and mutual recognition [between IFRS and US GAAP]". Narrowing of differences is also expected closer to home. Zhang Wei Guo, Chief Accountant with the China Securities and Regulatory Commission, confirms that "with the further developments of the breadth and depth of the Chinese economy, China will continue to impel the internationalisation of accounting standards, and differences between CAS [Chinese Accounting Standards] and IAS will diminish even further".

But for Jon Symonds, CFO at AstraZeneca, the future is in the balance right now. In five years' time, he says, "we will have clarity in the direction in which we are going. But the downside is that we could have both European IFRS and US IFRS and it is on a knife edge as to which way that will go." Locally, Martin Cubbon believes that by 2010 we will still be in a state of flux, a view echoed by Charles Grieve: "there is nothing new under the sun. The same issues, like goodwill, will be floating around and being argued about".

Commenting locally on the report, Carlson Tong, head of KPMG's audit practice in Hong Kong and China, said "The frank and diverse views expressed in this report give us all pause for thought. I feel proud that Hong Kong can claim that its financial statements are now the same as in London, Frankfurt, Sydney and over 90 other countries around the world and I am very encouraged by China's moves towards adopting international standards. But in the race to converge and conform, have we lost sight of the basic objective of financial reporting, being to produce information that is useful to users? I see addressing this fundamental concern as the challenge for the future for all parties involved." As Mike Rake, Chairman of KPMG International, says in the report: "It is essential that constituents, particularly users and preparers, play a full and active part in the future development of IFRS. We must all now work to ensure that IFRS delivers the intended benefits to companies and investors."

http://www.kpmg.com.cn/en/about/KPMG_news/060606_IFRSImplementation.html?TopMenuOn=4&LeftMenuOn=...

[Braden32601]

PROVES our trustworthy CEO!! GREAT FIND!! go SLJB!!

[uw86]

well done and explains and validates the delay

[Daddio5]

Audit delays - worldwide...

Thank you phyllostachys and STATX .. great find!!

Posted by: phyllostachys
In reply to: None Date:11/4/2006 8:31:19 PM
Post #of 148013

Very interesting and timely: KPMG chief rues lack of convergence in international accounting standards

KPMG International Chairman Mike Rake opens the KPMG Conference at the Grand Hyatt in Dubai.

Published: 11/05/2006 12:00 AM (UAE)

http://archive.gulfnews.com/business/Banking_and_Finance/10080002.html

By Arif Sharif, Staff Reporter

Dubai: Attempts to harmonise two competing international accounting standards is making slow progress and frustrating global businesses, the head of audit and accounting firm KPMG said yesterday.

Michael Rake, chairman of KPMG International, told a regional KPMG conference that the business world is frustrated with the inadequate progress on the convergence of accounting standards.

"We have the US accounting standards on the one hand and the international accounting standards [also called on the International Financial Reporting Standards, IFRS] on the other," Rake said in his opening address to KPMG's partners at the meet.

"They should be converged to a principles-based approach which is more comprehensible, but people feel that is not happening at the right pace. The US GAAP [generally accepted accounting principles] is in a mess and IFRS needs greater clarity in its framework".

Most of the world, including all banks, financial institutions and listed companies in the UAE, currently follow the IFRS, a principle-based accounting system. The US follows the US GAAP, that is now falling out of favour. The accounting bodies governing the two have committed to move together but need to move faster, Rake said.