"Financial Reporting in Japan examines Japanese practices and regulations in detail and places them in their 'environmental' and business context. It is generally agreed that Japan is one of the key countries so far as the harmonization of international accounting standards is concerned." "Part I covers the evolution of Japanese accounting and reporting practices examining Japanese enterprises, government, accounting regulation, and the accounting profession itself." "Part II deals in detail with principles and practice including disclosure principles, asset valuation, and a unique survey of Japanese corporate annual reports covering both listed and unlisted companies." "The final section contains substantive appendices providing examples of corporate financial reporting; a summary and comparison of Japanese, US and UK practice; recommendations issued by the Japanese Institute of Certified Public Accountants; and a chronology of accounting in Japan." "The book will be an indispensable analysis and reference for professionals and analysts or researchers concerned with the Japanese finance and business sectors, international accounting, and international trade and is published in association with the ICAEW."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Much attenton has been given to Japanese business, but this has mainly focused on management practices, production systems and manufacturing, and the business system. Very little has been written about Japanese accounting. In this new work, Kyojiro Someya, a former president of the Japanese Accounting Association and now Director of the Japan Accounting Research Institute, presents an overview of developments under three main headings: Japanese Accounting History, Problems in Financial Accounting Theory, and Cash Flow Accounting.

Little has been published on accounting standards in Japan and how they have developed. The purpose of this study is to construct a historical narrative of the interplay between accounting standards in Japan and theories of regulation. The authors demonstrate that delegation of the authority for accounting standard setting to the private sector in Japan is incomplete, and thus, the role of the public sector remains important. In the discussion about IFRS implementation in Japan, the movement in the United States, industry opinions, and ideological conflict between fair value versus historical cost play important roles. These elements combined led to the ambiguous coexistence of four sets of accounting standards in Japan. First, by using an explaining-outcome process-tracing method, the authors examine how these sets of standards occurred and explore the significance of each. Second, they deliver an explanation of this unique coexistence through the lens of theories of regulation. In doing so, they provide an overview of the history of the recent development of accounting regulation in Japan and offer an up-to-date response to current affairs or policy debates in Japan that have been rapidly changing. Providing a rare insight into accounting regulation in Japan, an IFRS non-application country, this concise text will be of great interest to researchers and advanced students in international accounting and accounting regulation.

This book is the result of an international comparative study of corporate governance begun in 2002, and provides analysis of the issue as it applies to management, moral hazards, accounting practices, and the institutional investor from both a Japanese and a global perspective. The study presents a view of the company as an entity that not only maximizes profit for stockholders but that also has a social role to play in maintaining a sustainable society.

There is a dearth of good books on accounting in China, East Asia and Southeast Asia. This book makes a valuable contribution towards filling the gap. The chapters in Part I of the book deal with the cultural influence and economic significance of East and Southeast Asia, and the interrelationships between these matters and accounting in Pacific Asia. Part II comprises chapters on accounting in individual countries (comprising China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Southeast Asia), written by academics who work and research in these countries. In particular, the authors focus on the extent of the harmonisation of domestic standards with international accounting standards and on the development of the accounting profession. Part III deals with the problems of and prospects for accounting harmonisation in the region.

Despite the globalization of accounting standards occurring through convergence to International Financial Reporting Standards, local accounting systems are deeply intertwined with each country’s unique institutions such as its corporate system, disclosure practices and enforcement mechanisms. First, this book empirically analyzes the effects of globalization and localization of accounting rules on corporate behavior such as earnings management, signaling, investment behavior and dividend payout policy. Second, the book unravels the economic consequences of disclosure based on the concept of self-disciplining enforcement such as management forecasts, environmental disclosures and risk disclosures by Japanese firms. This volume is a step forward in understanding the link between accounting and corporate behavior based on a new institutional accounting approach.

This is the first book to furnish a root cause of the low valuation of Japanese listed companies by using, as qualitative evidence, unique global investor surveys, which are rarely available for Japanese companies. Also contained in this book as quantitative evidence is empirical research with regression analysis implying a positive correlation between corporate governance and value creation in Japan. The author explains the rationale underlying the suggestion of the Ito Review on return on equity (ROE) 8% guidance, an almost 50% discounted valuation of the cash held by Japanese companies, corporate value and ROE, equity spread as a key performance indicator for value creation, an optimal dividend policy based on optimal capital structure, risk-adjusted hurdle rates for value-creative investment criteria, and the synchronization of environmental, social, and governance with equity spread. Illustrated with relevant statistics, evidence of shareholders’ voices, case studies, and empirical research, the book is highly recommended for readers who seek qualitative and quantitative evidence of Japan’s problems and potential prescriptions in connection with value creation. “This book empirically proves the relationship between non-financial capitals defined by IIRC and corporate value, and provides a convincing method to unlock corporate value in Japan via Abenomics corporate governance reforms. A must read!” Richard S. Howitt, Chief Executive Officer, International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) “This book addresses emerging issues such as the "Power of Intangibles" in addition to IMA-defined "Equity Spread" as a gauge for value creation from the viewpoint of management accounting. It is highly recommended for finance and accounting professionals.” Jeffrey C. Thomson, CMA, CAE. President and CEO, Institute of Management Accountants (IMA)