Comparability of IFRS and GAAP

Abstract

IFRS had been adopted by 166 countries, with the U.S. being a notable exception. The U.S. still uses GAAP as its reporting framework. Comparability of financial statements should be an important factor in evaluating the best frameworks. I collected data about operating leases of domestic and international airlines to compare the disclosures between IFRS and GAAP for the two reporting frameworks. The international airlines had more inconsistencies with the reported items, whereas the domestic airlines all reported the same items under GAAP standards, making it easier to compare the companies. My preliminary research of the new leasing standards under both GAAP and IFRS show that GAAP is a better reporting framework for comparability, and the U.S. should not adopt IFRS as it would compromise that comparability