REGIONAL COOPERATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

SOME ASPECTS OF TRADE STATISTICS AND REPORTING
Although Macedonian accounting regulation has accepted International Accounting
Standards and International Financial Reporting Standards as well as Code of Ethics of
IFAC, and they are obligatory for the companies listed on Macedonian Stock Exchange,
there are still some differences and items that cannot be reconciled with IAS/IFRS. Here
we are going to mention some of them. Firstly, financial statements schedules prescribed
from Public Revenue Office are not in compliance with those in European Union. Second,
Macedonian regulation prescribed depreciation rates that is not in accordance with IAS
16. In accordance with this standard the company is allowed to adopt depreciation rate
in its convenience, but in Macedonian case, in order to prepare financial statements for
tax purposes, the companies must to use depreciation rates prescribed in depreciation rate
schedule issued by Ministry of Finance. Third, the new Tax law from January 1, 2009 is
not in accordance with IAS 12 Differed tax. With our new law there is no anymore need
for differed tax because tax rate is calculated only on distributed income. Forth, before
acceptance of IAS and IFRS, in accordance with Macedonian national standards, there
was revalorization rate for fixed assets for tax purposes in order to have more realistic
base in recognizing costs and calculating tax. When companies started to use IAS/IFRS
they were obliged to remove these revalorization rates and to make evidence of fixed
assets in financial statements at historic costs. Now companies are faced with issue to
have two bases of fixed assets: one for tax purposes with previously used revalorization
rate and one in accordance with IAS/IFRS. The companies cannot report their fixed assets
in accordance with IAS/IFRS because in the software system in our Public Revenue
Office they have greater base for calculation costs and therefore, income taxes. Fifth,
in accordance with Macedonian regulation and financial statements scheme there is no
item for evidence of short term provisions, although it exists in IAS 36. Furthermore, all
differences in accounting regulation and partially implementation of IAS/IFRS will lead
to not comparable GDP. Data for GDP calculation are draw from financial statements of
the companies, so more harmonized accounting profession means bigger comparability of
GDP across countries. Besides all these issues in accounting harmonization that are going
to be solved and achieved fully harmonization with European Union regulation in near
future, there might be other not so important differences. In general Macedonian accounting
regulation is almost fully harmonized with European Union accounting regulation.
Therefore, results of the researches are expected in defining steps that have to be undertaken
in accounting profession in order to allow reducing of the harmonization pressure with
respecting of particular environment specifics. Every country has its role in the growth
and development of the companies. Their operations have to be reported by accounting
in order final financial information to be useful for the users of the financial information.
This will lead business transactions and results to be achieved on sound information basis.
Along with the benefits in the country, harmonization of standards will contribute for better
inclusion of the country in the process of integration and globalization in EU.
CONCLUSION
Financial reporting, in general, is considered as a part of communication process. Because of
the different characteristics of individual national environments, standards’ and accounting
bodies’ creators have imposed different alternatives for recognition, measurement and
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