EU ambassador urges global accounting standards
29 Dec 2002
In a Speech (PDF 28k) at the European Institute in Washington, Guenter Burghardt, European Union Ambassador to the United States, spoke about Creating a Transatlantic Securities Market: EU/US Regulatory Convergence.
He supported a market in which investors on both sides of the Atlantic have access to adequate and timely information based on one set of principles-based global accounting rules. "The EU will adopt International Accounting Standards from 2005, greatly reducing the burdens and costs on companies looking to do business cross-border on the basis of accounts prepared in accordance with high quality international standards. However, those looking to do business in the US will still be faced with the costs of reconciling those accounts to US GAAP standards."