ONE ROOF

The remaining new or amended standards and interpretations
whose application was mandatory from the January 1 to December
31, 2009 reporting period had no effect on the
HOCHTIEF Group.
Other new accounting pronouncements issued by the IASB
and IFRIC take the form of standards and interpretations that
affect the HOCHTIEF Consolidated Financial Statements but
do not have to be applied for the 2009 fiscal year and in some
cases have not yet been endorsed by the EU.
Amendments to IFRS 3 Business Combinations and IAS
27 Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements:
The amendments relate to accounting for business combinations,
acquisitions of additional shares in subsidiaries, and
partial disposals of subsidiaries while retaining control. There
is a major change in the treatment of acquisition-related costs
(e.g. legal and consulting fees). These are no longer capitalized
as part of the cost of acquisition and are now recognized instead
as expense in the period they are incurred. On partial
acquisitions, there is now a choice to measure non-controlling
interests (formerly “minority interests”) either at fair value including
their proportionate share of goodwill (the full goodwill
method) or as before at their proportionate interest in the net
identifiable assets of the acquiree. The amendments also affect
step acquisitions: At the date when control is achieved in
a step acquisition, the previously held interests in the acquiree
are remeasured to fair value and any gain recognized in profit
or loss, and goodwill is measured as the remeasured fair value
of the previously held equity interest, plus the consideration
transferred to obtain control less the fair value of the net assets
of the acquiree. Finally, the new rules require any contingent
consideration (e.g. under an earn-out clause) to be recognized,
irrespective of the level of probability, at its acquisitiondate
fair value as part of the consideration transferred in exchange
for the acquiree and a liability to be recognized in the
same amount. Subsequent changes in the fair value of a liability
recognized for contingent consideration are no longer treated
as an adjustment to goodwill (and accounted for directly in
equity) but are recognized through profit and loss in the period
they arise. The main amendment to IAS 27 closes a gap in the
rules on accounting for acquisitions of additional shares in
subsidiaries and for partial disposals of subsidiaries while retaining
control. Such transactions are now treated as equity
transactions. On partial disposals of investments that result in
loss of control, any gain or loss on disposal is recognized, the
residual holding (e.g. an equity-method investment) remeas-
❘ Information for our Shareholders ❘ ❘ Management Report ❘ ❘ Financial Statements and Notes ❘
ured at fair value at the date when control is lost and any difference
from the previous carrying amount recognized in profit
or loss for the period. The amended IFRS 3 and IAS 27 apply
for business combinations with an acquisition date in fiscal
years beginning on or after July 1, 2009. The described changes
must be applied prospectively. The amendments represent a
change in accounting practice at HOCHTIEF. In particular, partial
disposals of controlling interests that do not result in a loss
of control can no longer be accounted for through profit or
loss. Additionally, any gain or loss on remeasurement of previously
held interests to fair value at the date of achieving control
in a step acquisition is recognized in profit or loss. Finally, acquisition-related
costs in the context of a business combination
are recognized immediately in profit or loss.
Amendments to IAS 24 Related Party Disclosures: In
November 2009, the IASB issued a revised version of IAS 24,
primarily to make the standard clearer and more readily comprehensible
so as to ensure its uniform interpretation and application.
The new IAS 24 notably includes a revised definition of
the term “related party.” The new standard also provides a
partial exemption for entities controlled, jointly controlled or
significantly influenced by the state. It also adds executory
contracts to the types of transactions requiring disclosure. The
changes apply retrospectively for fiscal years beginning on or
after January 1, 2011. EU endorsement is still pending. Application
of the changes may add to the transactions requiring
disclosure by the HOCHTIEF Group.
Amendments to IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recogni-
tion and Measurement: The IASB adopted amendments to
IAS 39 in 2008. These make clear that it is permissible to designate
only part of the changes in the cash flows or fair value
of a financial instrument as a hedged item. If a purchased option
is designated a hedging instrument, only its intrinsic value and
not its time value is an effective hedge as the hedged item does
not have a time value component. Finally, the amendment rules
that inflation is not a separately identifiable and reliably measurable
risk and so cannot be designated a hedged risk unless
it is a contractually specified portion of cash flows. The changes
apply retrospectively for fiscal years beginning on or after July
1, 2009. Earlier application is permitted. The new rules have
no material consequences for HOCHTIEF.
Annual Report 2009 143