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Session 06 Foreign Currency Translation

Session 06 Foreign Currency Translation. Matakuliah : F0142/Akuntansi Internasional Tahun : 2006. Reasons For Translation. Process of restating financial information from one currency to another is called translation Many of the problems associated with currency translation stem from :

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Session 06 Foreign Currency Translation

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  1. Session 06Foreign CurrencyTranslation Matakuliah : F0142/Akuntansi Internasional Tahun : 2006

  2. Reasons For Translation • Process of restating financial information from one currency to another is called translation • Many of the problems associated with currency translation stem from : • The relative value of foreign currencies are seldom fixed • Recording foreign currency transactions, measuring a firm’s exposure to the effects of currency gyrations and communicating with foreign audiences of interest • For accounting purposes, a foreign currency asset or liability is said to be exposed to currency risk if a change in the rate at which currencies are exchanged causes the parent (reporting) currency equivalent to change • The expanded scale of international investment increases the need to convey accounting information about companies domiciled in one country to users in others.

  3. Background And Terminology • Translation is not the same as conversion, which is the physical exchange of one currency for another • Translation is simply a change in monetary expression. • Foreign currency transactions take place in the Spot, Forward, or Swap Markets • The U.S dollar price of Indian Rpe might be $ 0.022737 and indirect quote approximately Rpe 43.98 to acquire 1 U.S $ • The cash balance of a U.S subsidiary located in Bombay on January 31 is Rpe 1,000,000. • Spot exchange rate on that date is $ 0.0218 • The U.S $ equivalent of the Rpe cash balance is : • Rpe 1,000,000 x $ 0.0218 = $ 21,800 or • Rpe 1,000,000 : Rpe 43.98 = $ 21,800

  4. The Problem • If foreign exchanges rates were relatively stable, currency translation would be no more difficult than translating inches or feet to their metric equivalents. • The currencies of most industrialized countries are free to find their own values in the currency market

  5. Financial Statement Effects of Alternative Translation Rates • The following three exchange rates can be used to translate foreign currency : • Current rate, is the exchange rate prevailing as of the financial statement date • Historical rate, is the prevailing exchange rate when a foreign currency asset is first acquired or a foreign currency liability first incurred • Average rate, is a simple or weighted average of either current or historical exchange rates. • Translation is simply a change in monetary expression. • We must distinguish between translation gains and losses and transaction gains and losses

  6. Financial Statement Effects of Alternative Translation Rates Types of Exchange Adjustments Exchange Gain/Losses Transaction Gain/Loss Translation Gain/Loss Transaction Date Financial Statement Date Settlement Date Initial Financial Statement Date Subsequent Financial Statement Date Unsettled Transaction Settled Transaction

  7. Foreign Currency Transactions • A foreign currency transaction may be denominated in one currency but measured or recorded in another. • FAS No. 52, the U.S authoritative pronouncement on accounting for foreign currency mandates the following treatment for foreign exchange transaction : • At the date the transaction is recognized, each asset, liability, revenue, expense, gain or loss arising from the transaction shall be measured and recorded in the functional currency of the recording entity by use of the exchange rate in effect at that date • At each balance sheet date, recorded balances that are denominated in a currency other than the functional currency of the recording entity shall be adjusted to reflect the current exchange rate

  8. Foreign Currency Transactions • Single Transaction Perspective • Under a single transaction perspective, exchange adjustment are treated as an adjustment to the original transaction accounts on the premise that a transaction and its settlement are a single event. • Two Transaction Perspective • Under a two transaction perspective, collection of the receivable is considered a separate event from the sale that gave rise to it.

  9. Foreign Currency Translation • Single Rate Method • Applied a single exchange rate, the current or closing rate, to all foreign currency assets and liabilities • Multiple Rate Methods Multiple rate methods combine current and historical exchanges rates in the translation process • Current - Non Current Method • A foreign subsidiary’s current assets and current liabilities are translated into their parent company’s reporting currency at the current rate. Non current assets and liabilities are translated at historical rates

  10. Foreign Currency Translation • Multiple Rate Methods • Monetary – Non Monetary Method • Monetary assets and liabilities are translated at the current rate. Non monetary items are translated at historical rates. • Temporal Method • Currency translation is a measurement conversion process or a restatement of a given value

  11. Foreign Currency Translation • Which Is The Best ? We pose three questions • Is it reasonable to use more than one translation method ? • More than one translation method is needed. A single translation method cannot equally serve translations occurring under different condition • If so, what should be the acceptable methods and under what conditions should they be applied ? • Three different translation approach can be accepted (the historical method, the current method, no translation at all) • Are there situations in which translations should not be done at all ? • No translation is appropriate between highly unstable and highly stable currencies

  12. Foreign Currency Translation • Appropriate Current Rate • The rates of exchange used in translation methods as either historical or current • Average rates are often used in income statements for expediency. • Sometimes a country applies different exchange rates to different transactions. Several possibilities have been suggested : • Dividend remittance rates • Free market rates • Any applicable penalty or preference rates

  13. Foreign Currency Translation • Translation Gains and Losses • Deferral • Deferral and Amortization • Some favor deferring translation gains or losses and amortizing these adjustments over the life of related balance sheet items. • Partial Deferral • Recognize losses as soon as they occur, but to recognize gains only as they are realized • No Deferral • Recognize translation gains and losses in the income statement immediately.

  14. Translation Accounting Development • Chronicle financial reporting initiatives in the United States as they are representative of experience elsewhere : • Pre 1965 • Before 1965 the translation practices of many U.S companies were guided by Accounting Research Bulletin No. 4 (ARB No. 4). This statement advocated the current – non current method. • 1965 - 1975 • Translating all foreign currency payables and receivables at the current rate was allowed after Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 6 was issued in 1965. • 1975 - 1981 • FASB issued the controversial FAS No. 8 in 1975 • 1981 - Present • FASB reconsidered FAS No. 8 and after many public meetings and two exposure drafts, issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 52 in 1981.

  15. Features of Standard No. 52 • Standard No. 52, its translation rules are thus designed to : • Reflect, in consolidated statements, the financial results and relationships measured in the primary currency in which each consolidated entity does business (its functional currency). • Provide information that is generally compatible with the expected economic effects of an exchange rate change on an enterprise’s cash flows and equity • These objectives are based on the concept of a functional currency

  16. Features of Standard No. 52 • Translation When Local Currency Is The Functional Currency • If the functional currency is the foreign currency in which the foreign entity’s records are kept, its financial statements are translated to dollars using the current rate method. • The following current rate procedures are used : • All foreign currency asset and liabilities are translated to dollars using the exchange rate prevailing as of the balance sheet date • Revenues and expenses are translated using the exchange rate prevailing on the transaction date • Translation gains and losses are reported in a separate component of consolidated stockholders’ equity.

  17. Features of Standard No. 52 • Translation When The U.S Dollar Is The Functional Currency • When the U.S Dollar is a foreign entity’s functional currency, its foreign currency financial statements are re measured to dollars using the temporal method. • All translation gains and losses, specifically : • Monetary assets and liabilities and non monetary assets valued at current market prices are translated using the rate prevailing as of the financial statement dates. • Revenues and expenses are translated using average exchange rates for the period except those items related to non monetary items, which are translated using historical rates • Translation gains and losses are reflected in current income

  18. Features of Standard No. 52 • Translation When Foreign Currency Is The Functional Currency • The financial statements are first remeasured from the local currency into the functional currency (temporal method) and then translated into U.S dollars using the current rate method • Where an entity has more than one distinct and separable operation, each operation may be considered as a separate entity with its own functional currency. • Once the functional currency for a foreign entity is determined, FAS No. 52 requires that it used consistently unless changes in economic circumstances clearly indicate that the functional currency has changed

  19. The Debate • FAS No. 52 was designed to quiet many of criticisms leveled at FAS No. 8 • Reporting Perspective • FAS No. 52 accommodates both local and parent company reporting perspectives in the consolidated financial statements • It has also been suggested that FAS No. 52 is inconsistent with the theory of consolidation • What Happened to Historical Cost ? • Translated amount defies theoretical description of historical cost

  20. The Debate • Concept of Income • Under FAS No. 52, adjustments arising from the translation of foreign currency financial statements and certain transactions are made directly to shareholders’ equity, thus by passing the income statement. • Managed Earnings • FAS No. 52 provides opportunities to manage earnings

  21. Foreign Currency Translation And Inflation • Translation When Foreign Currency Is The Functional Currency • The FASB decided against inflation adjustments before translation, believing such adjustments to be inconsistent with the historical cost valuation framework used in basic U.S statements. • As a solution, FAS No. 52 requires use of the U.S dollar as the functional currency for foreign operations domiciled in hyperinflationary environment

  22. Foreign Currency Translation Elsewhere • Translation When Foreign Currency Is The Functional Currency • The main difference between the Canadian standard (CICA 1650) and FAS No. 52 concerns foreign long term debt. • The major difference between the U.K and U.S standard relates to self contained subsidiaries in hyperinflationary countries. • Compared to FAS No. 52 the Australian standard calls for revaluing noncurrent, nonmonetary assets for subsidiaries in high inflation countries prior to translation. The New Zealand standard is silent on. • Most continental EU countries, including France and Germany have no standards. As a result, practice is up to the companies

  23. Current Trends • Foreign currency translation remains a vexing and controversial technical issue. • In the United States, foreign companies are allowed to follow the International Standard (IAS 21) instead of the U.S standard (FAS No. 52) in foreign currency translation. • In time, the FASB may resolve the differences between FAS No. 52 and IAS 21 in favor of the international standard.

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