One or Two Statement Approach for the Income Statement of Czech Companies?

Abstract

Purpose of the article: The article examines the IAS 1 revised that allows the company to choose between a reclassification of items by nature or by function (destination), it also provides two alternative presentations of the income statement: a single statement of comprehensive income or two statements, the first containing the components of net income, and the second that, starting from net income, shows the other components of expanded income. Methodology/methods: First we outline the principal theories of the statement of comprehensive income, secondly we concentrate the research to obtain the empirical data. The research is developed in the following steps: selection of the companies surveyed; selection of the documents to be analysed; election of the empirical aspects to be studied. Scientific aim: The aim of the research is to define which format has been adopted by companies listed on the Czech Republic Stock Exchange for the new Income Statement to be prepared according to the International Accounting Standards – IAS 1 revised in 2007. In particular, we examine the Consolidated Financial Statements 2010 published online. Findings: This article illustrates the two choices that have the companies to present items of net income, items of other comprehensive income and total comprehensive income: they can create one continuous statement of comprehensive income or two separate consecutive statements. Conclusions: The results show that the Czech financial statements have not a firms’ propensity to separate the section of the income statement in two statements rather than to integrate it into a single one, while the reclassification of the income statements privileges the reclassification by nature.