UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN INTERNATIONAL ACCOUNTING STANDARDS AND U.S. GAAP

With the continuous globalization of capital markets and the growing popularity of International Accounting Standards (IAS), understanding IAS is becoming increasingly more important. This study compares IAS with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (U.S. GAAP). Differences between IAS and U.S. GAAP are found in twenty-six of the forty core areas in financial reporting identified in the International Organization of Securities Commissions' list. Notwithstanding the differences identified in this study, IAS and U.S. GAAP are broadly comparable in most areas and progress has been made in reducing differences between them.