Presentation Pattern and the Value Relevance of Comprehensive Income --- Evidence from China

摘要

In 2006 the Chinese Ministry of finance(CMF) issued new accounting standards that required companies began to present comprehensive income information in the statement of equity. In 2009 and 2014, CMF changed the comprehensive income presentation pattern consecutively twice, from the equity statement pattern to the performance statement transition pattern, and then to the single performance statement. The purpose of these changes is to harmonize China Accounting Standard (CAS) with International Financial Reporting Standards(IFRS). It also aims to enhance the usefulness of comprehensive income information by improving the transparency of information disclosure. From the perspective of presentation patterns, the paper examines the influence of presentation pattern changes on the value relevance of comprehensive income (CI), and on other comprehensive income (OCI). The results show that, under the equity statement pattern, neither CI nor OCI was correlated with value. Under the performance statement transition pattern, both CI and OCI have the value relevance. Under the single performance statement pattern, the CI has higher value relevance, while the OCI does not reflect higher value relevance. This study reveals the impact of comprehensive income presentation pattern on the usefulness of decision making. It has certain inspiration and reference for improving the quality of accounting standards and financial reporting.