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Friday 30 May 2008

Ben on 2008/05/29 11:53:46 PM - Nicolaas

Ben on 2008/05/29 11:53:46 PM - Nicolaas

Finweek


Are you serious? This would worsen inflation like you have no idea. Inflation targeting hinges CRITICALLY on the extent to which players in the economy believe the target will be maintained and sought after. If wages are increased in line with inflation, or possibly above inflation, this causes what economists call a "wage spiral".

Costs like salaries - what you term contant items - will need to be covered by way of higher prices from the firm. Isnt this obvious? If people demand higher wages, this worsens inflation. So if the accountant raises your salary by 1.2% every month, and this cost is passed on to the consumer as a 1.2% increase in the price of that company's product every month, can you see that this causes inflation? It all well and good to "maintain a persons real salary" but this will cause massive inflation that will spiral out of control.

A better tactic is to aggressively tackle inflation, to make everyone aware that the government is ADAMANT that they are sticking to it, lest workers demand increases in wages above inflation. It simply isnt possible to keep inflation at 3-6% if people demand wage increases of 10% a year...

Nicolaas Smith on 2008/05/29 11:23:50 PM - Re: Logan



Nicolaas Smith on 2008/05/29 11:23:50 PM - Re: Logan

Buy the ebook for $2.99 or £1.53 or €2.68



"Isn't the monthly inflation taken care of by the annual wage increase if based on annualised inflation rate?" Yes. That is one constant item. That is only salaries and wages. What about retained income, issued share capital, personal taxes, company taxes, VAT, trade debtors, trade creditors, profit and loss items, shareholders equity, etc? I always state: Historical Cost Accounting inflation destroys the real value of constant items never or not fully updated. Retained earnings, issued share capital of companies with no non-monetary items to revalue, etc, are never updated in non-hyperinflationary economies. Their values are destroyed and have always been destroyed at the full rate of inflation. The real values of salaries, wages, taxes, rents, etc are, only where they are not fully updated, destroyed at a lower rate than the full inflation rate.

Logan on 2008/05/29 10:54:06 PM - Maybe we need change

Logan on 2008/05/29 10:54:06 PM - Maybe we need change !


If the aNC does decide to relax the inflation targets a bit that won't be a problem, economists are fiercely divided anyway over what level of inflation is ok. To deny that is contested terrain would be silly, the research papers are all over the place. The problem is that we have to be flexible enough to maintain social stability. Economic policy purity is for lecture halls, not the real world. Anyway, where is all this so-called investment? Years of low inflation and very little FDI, a few biggies and that's it, compared to Brazil, India etc. Investors want growth, not policy purity. p.s. Nicolaas, interesting points! Isn't the monthly inflation taken care of by the annual wage increase if based on annualised inflation rate?

"OK, so what measure of inflation do we use?"

Nicolaas Smith on 2008/05/29 11:15:17 PM - Re: Neelsie Naamloos

Finweek


"OK, so what measure of inflation do we use"

CPI which is 11.1% at the moment.

"should it be a one-sided decision by the company, or will they consult labour on the monthly salary adjustement?"

When all accountants decide to abandon the stable measuring unit assumption it will apply throughout SA. It will be an automatic monthly adjustment to all constant items [salaries, wages, rents, fees, retainers, royalties, issued share capital, retained income, personal taxes, trade debtors, trade creditors, company taxes, value added taxes, all items in the profit and loss account, etc] in terms of the monthly inflation rate (CPI). Computer accounting programs will have to be upgraded for this purpose. Any individual company or economic entity can do this.

"How will such a system be administrated so that it is equitable to everyone,"

It is equitable since all constant items are updated monthly in a non-hyperinflationary economy at the monthly inflation rate and daily in a hyperinflationary economy at the daily parallel rate of daily index rate. It is simply an admittance that the Rand´s real value is being destroyed by inflation. So, only all constant items have to be adjusted at the monthly rate of inflation. It is simply a matter of maintaining all constant items´ real values, because, when any constant item is never updated, eg. retained income, then its real value is destroyed at the rate of infaltion

See this peer reviewed article in  Accountancy SA


"and what will the costs be?"

The cost of upgrading accounting programs and training accounting staff in updating constant items.

"And why will inflation stabilize if everyone's avaialable cash keeps growing at the rate of inflation in any case?"

Inflation is the destruction of value. When constant items are never or not fully updated at the monthly rate of inflation then their real values are being destroyed at the rate of inflation when they are never updated (retained income) or at a lower rate when they are not fully updated (salaries, wages). When accountants abandon the stable measuring unit assumption and update all constant items monthy then no real value will be destroyed in constant items for an indefinite period of time. That is thus zero destruction of real value in constant items, that is 0% inflation in constant items only.

We will still have 11.1% cash inflation in monetary items, that is in the Rand and in all monetary items. The real economy will be stabilized, internal demand will be stabilized. The destruction of the real economy will stop for an indefinite period of time. Accountants will maintain billions of Rand in constant item real value in the real economy instead of destroying billions of Rand in the real economy each and every year

© 2005-2010 by Nicolaas J Smith. All rights reserved
No reproduction without permission.

Neelsie Naamloos on 2008/05/29 10:43:07 PM - Nicolaas Smith

Neelsie Naamloos on 2008/05/29 10:43:07 PM - Nicolaas Smith


OK, so what measure of inflation do we use, should it be a one-sided decision by the company, or will they consult labour on the monthly salary adjustement? How will such a system be administrated so that it is equitable to everyone, and what will the costs be? And why will inflation stabilize if everyone's avaialable cash keeps growing at the rate of inflation in any case? Just asking. Everyone's Friend Neelsie

"where is TITO? In the "real economy" or in the "monetary economy"?"


Nicolaas Smith on 2008/05/29 10:19:37 PM - Re: Benzo

Finweek


"where is TITO? In the "real economy" or in the "monetary economy"?"

Tito is in the monetary economy. 11.1% inflation (Tito?) is destroying R194 billion in the real value of all monetary items (M3 = R1751.361 billion) in SA. At 3% inflation Tito would only destroy R52 billion of the real value of all money in SA. His job is thus worth R142 billion at the moment. If he can bring inflation down to 3% he will not destroy - or maintain R142 billion in the real value of all money and monetary items in SA. It would be wonderful if he can bring inflation down to 3% and maintain R142 billion in the SA economy. We can pay him a big bonus for that - when he achieves that.

"Where am I? in the "real economy" or in the "monetary economy"?"

You are in both.

Where you own money or montary items your are in the monetary economy and Tito destroys the real value of your money at 11.1% instead of 3% at the moment. You can make your own calculations how much Tito is destroying in the real value of your average cash balance you keep over a year. Where you own or use or buy or sell things that are not money or monetary items and these things are variable items, e.g. your house, car, mobile phone, clothes, food, energy, fuel, clothes, consumer goods, etc your are in the variable item part of the real economy. You are simply in the market for these things: you are paying market prices for these items in the variable part fo the real economy.

You are in the constant items part of the real economy with your salary you receive, the taxes you pay, the rent you pay or receive, the issued share capital of your company, the retained income in your company, etc.

Here your company accountant makes as if he is very dumb and assumes that there is no inflation at all. All company accountants do this. Your company accountant assumes that there is no inflation in SA only for this purpose. He assumes the Rand is perfectly stable. But we all know it is not. Your salary is a constant item. Your company accountant should increase your salary by about 1.2% per month at the moment.

He does not do that. He assumes there is no inflation - only for this purpose and nothing else. So he pays you out the same salary every month end. So he destroys the real value of your salary at 1.2% per month or 11.1% per annum. So to the retained income and the issued share capital of your company and the taxes he pays over to the government.

In total all accountants in SA destroy billions of constant item real value every year in SA. No-one forces them to do that. They can stop assuming there is no inflation in SA only for this purpose anytime they want to. When they do they will maintain b billions and billions of real value in the SA economy, increase economic growth and create more jobs in SA.

"Will the two ever meet? If so; when? If not, who should care?"

The two are always there together.

Benzo on 2008/05/29 09:36:42 PM - Nic Smith

Benzo on 2008/05/29 09:36:42 PM - Nic Smith


"South African's sound economic policies" ???? where is TITO? In the "real economy" or in the "monetary economy"? Where am I? in the "real economy" or in the "monetary economy"? Will the two ever meet? If so; when? If not, who should care?

Nicolaas Smith on 2008/05/29 09:28:26 PM - Re: Viparo

Nicolaas Smith on 2008/05/29 09:28:26 PM - Re: Viparo

Finweek

Viparo, For example: cars are variable items - their prices vary in the car market: there is a market for cars. Their prices depend on demand and supply. But, salaries and wages are constant items: there is no market for salaries. You cannot sell your salary in a market. Or you cannot buy someone else´s salary in a market. They are constant items.

The value of your salary - a constant real value - is paid over to you in Rands. But, cash inflation destroys the real value of the Rand. So the Rand is always worth less. So, your constant value salary must be updated at the monthly inflation rate to maintain its constant value. It is not done anywhere.

The company accountant ignores the fact that the Rand is losing value every month. The company accountant assumes that there is no inflation in the Rand as far as your salary is concerned. So the company accountant pays you out in Rands that are always worth less. So, your salary should be increased every month that inflation increases. Now at about the rate of 1.2% per month. This is not done. So the real value of your salary is being destroyed by the accountant at 1.2% per month. This is easy to change.

The company accountant can update your salary and all other constant items in the company every month. All accountants in SA are assuming that there is no inflation in the Rand for this purpose. So they are destroying billions of Rand in real value every year in SA. The real vlaue of your salary and all salaries, all taxes, all retained income, all companies´ capital etc.

We can stop this. This will increase economic growth in SA and create more jobs.

Viparo on 2008/05/29 09:10:40 PM - Nicolaas

Viparo on 2008/05/29 09:10:40 PM - Nicolaas

Finweek 29 May 2008

Nope, lost you after "when"

CAs please drop the stable measuring unit assumption

Nicolaas Smith on 2008/05/29 09:01:15 PM - CAs please drop the stable measuring unit assumpti

Finweek 29 May 2008

When CAs drop their assumption that there is no inflation when they account constant items like salaries, wages, taxes, retained income, issued share capital, etc they will guarantee the achievement of a 0% inflation target in the real economy for an indefinite period of time. http://realvalueaccounting.blogspot.com/

0% inflation in the real economy = value stability

Nicolaas Smith on 2008/05/29 08:53:53 PM - 0% inflation in the real economy = value stability

Finweek 29 May 2008


0% inflation in the real economy is value stability in the real economy when SA Chartered Accountants abondon their stable measuring unit assumption. CAs assume that there is no inflation (they just simply ignore the 11.1% current inflation - can you believe that!!!!!!) when they account constant items like salaries, wages, rents, taxes, retained income, issued share capital etc.

They thus destroy billions of Rand in constant item real value this year and every year as long as they keep on assuming there is not inflation only for this purpose. When they abondon the stable measuring unit assumption they will maintain billions of Rand in the SA real economy instead of destroying it.

By abondoning the stable measuring unit assumption - no one stops them from doing that - SA Chartered Accountants will guarantee 0% inflation in the real economy. We will still have 11.1% cash inflation in the monetary economy.

Saturday 24 May 2008

Accounting for Inflation


Financial Mail 09 May 2008


Accounting for inflation

Nicolaas Smith, Lisbon

DA deputy finance spokesman Dion George states: "Reserve Bank governor Tito Mboweni recently hiked interest rates, despite real concern over the impact this will have on sustainable economic growth" (Letters April 25).


SA accountants freely destroy real value in the real economy with their assumption that the rand is perfectly stable only for the purpose of accounting constant value items, and have absolutely no concern about the negative impact this has on sustainable economic growth.


There is an option that would make this destruction of the SA real economy by inflation or hyperinflation impossible - if we so choose.


We have to remember that inflation is the destruction of value in monetary and constant items over time.


Inflation has two components: a monetary component - cash inflation - and a non monetary component - historical cost accounting inflation. We can stop the second component completely, which will stop the destruction of real value in the real economy completely.


The 10,6% (March) cash inflation was caused by excessive (21%) money supply growth in SA. What causes excessive money supply is a complex economic process that should be dominated by Mboweni and the Bank as it is dominated by central banks elsewhere.


Historical cost accounting inflation is caused by the combination of 10,6% inflation and SA accountants' implementation of the stable measuring unit assumption (a historical cost accounting practice) throughout the SA economy.


The destruction of real value in the real economy by SA accountants will stop when they stop their assumption that the rand is perfectly stable only for the purpose of accounting constant items never or not fully updated.


We will still have 10,6% cash inflation in the monetary economy - all else being equal - but we will have 0% inflation in the real economy with an (as for now unknown) increase in GDP and sustainable economic growth in SA.


Inflation would then have only a monetary component, namely, cash inflation.


No-one stops us from revoking the stable measuring unit assumption.


The historical cost accounting model is not required by SA law, or by Generally Accepted Accounting Practice or the International Accounting Standards Board.

Thursday 22 May 2008

Inflation value destruction in South Africa

March 2008 CPI 153.9 Annual inflation 10.6%

Real value destroyed in 2008

1. By 10.6% cash inflation in monetary items, that is, in M3: 10.6% of R1.751361 trillion = R185 billion per annum

2. Unwittingly by SA Chartered Accountants: 10.6% Historical Cost Accounting inflation in the real value of Retained Income of companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange = Billions per annum. Actual amount in the process of being calculated.

3. Unwittingly by SA Chartered Accountants in other constant items never or not fully updated = Billions per annum. Value unknown.

Accountants eroding real value

Accountants are eroding real value in South Africa each and every day with their assumption that the Rand is perfectly stable only when they account constant items like salaries, wages, taxes, retained income, issued share capital, etc in SA.

That is, they assume that changes in the Rand´s general purchasing power are not sufficiently important to require adjustments to the basic financial statements with regard to these constant items.

Accountants thus destroy hundreds of billions of Rand in real value in SA each and every year.
That will benefit everyone in SA for an indefinite period of time.

© 2005-2010 by Nicolaas J Smith. All rights reserved

No reproduction without permission.

Congratulations Mr Mboweni

I wish to congratulate Mr Mboweni for admitting that 10.6% inflation is not consistent with price stability. Price stability is a year-on-year increase in the CPI of 0%. A high degree of price stability is a year-on-year increase in the CPI of 2%.

10.6% South African inflation destroys R185 billion per annum in the real value of M3 valued at R1.751 trillion. 6% inflation will destroy R105 billion in M3 while 3% inflation will destroy R52.5 billion in M3 real value per annum. I support an upper limit of 2% inflation in SA that will destroy R35 billion in M3 real value per annum.

When SA Chartered Accountants stop assuming that the Rand is perfectly stable only when they account constant items (e.g. retained income) they will guarantee 0% inflation in the real economy for an indefinite period of time.

The benefits of 0% inflation in the real economy can scarcely be overstimated, especially as these are, in principle, unlimited in duration and accrue year after year.

Instead CAs are currently destroying billions of Rand each and every year in retained income real value in all SA companies.

Monday 19 May 2008

IAS 29 doubly flawed

It is not only flawed in it´s definition of monetary items as being money held and "items to be received or paid in money" (everything is received or paid in money - both monetary and non-monetary items) but also when it states that Retained Income in the first period of restatement is the balancing figure after restatement of all other balance sheet items.

This is a very serious mistake by the IASB.

Retained Income is a constant real value non-monetary item like Issued Share Capital and should be restated at the daily parallel rate or daily index rate in hyperinflationary economies and at the monthly inflation rate in non-hyperinflationary economies from the date it came about to today´s date.

The book "RealValueAccounting.Com - The next step in our fundamental model of accounting" which is available as a free download from a link on this blog, followed the flawed IASB approach.

This will be corrected in the new book: "Killing the real economy - South African Chartered Accountants unwittingly destroy real value on a massive scale." Unpublished.

Saturday 17 May 2008

Historical Cost Accounting versus revoking the stable measuring unit assumption in SA

Under HCA


1. Variable items are valued correctly in terms of SA Generally Accepted Accounting Practice and International Financial Reporting Standards. No value is being destroyed by SA Chartered Accountants implementing the above or automatically by the combination of inflation and the HCA model.

2. 10.6% inflation destroys R185 billion per annum in R1.751 trillion M3 real value. 2% inflation would have only destroyed R35 billion. Think about that Mr Mboweni. [Tito, your job is most probably worth R150 billion per annum at the moment - and rising. :) ]


3. Chartered Accountants most probably (actual value in the process of being calculated) destroy another R60 billion (estimate) per annum in constant item real value because they assume the Rand is stable (a very silly and a very costly assumption) only when they account constant items never of not fully updated. At 2% inflation they would only destroy R35 billion per annum.

Buy the ebook for $2.99 or £1.53 or €2.68



Revoking the stable measuring unit assumption


A. Variable items would be valued correctly by CA´s exactly as in 1 above.

B. 10.6% inflation will destroy R185 billion per annum in R1.751 trillion M3 real value exactly the same as in 2 above.

C. Chartered Accountants will not destroy any real value in constant items. They will maintain R185 billion (estimated value) per annum in constant items real value in the case of 10.6% cash inflation instead of destroying it. This is the same as investing R60 billion per annum in constant items in the SA economy for an indefinite period of time - all else being equal. There will be 0% inflation in the real economy. The benefits to GDP and the economic growth rate will be unlimited in duration and accrue year after year.

It will result in the automatic monthly updating in terms of the Consumer Price Index of salaries, wages, rents, fees, royalties, retainers, issued share capital, retained income, share premium and share discount account balances, trade debtors, trade creditors, income taxes, company taxes, value added taxes and all profit and loss account items, etc in South Africa´s high inflationary economy.

The above items will be updated on a daily basis in terms of a daily index rate or a daily parallel hard currency rate in a hyperinflationary economy like Zimbabwe´s - as it was done for 30 years by Brazil.


Buy the ebook for $2.99 or £1.53 or €2.68

It will be completely impossible for SA Chartered Accountants to unwittingly carry on with their current destruction of the SA real economy.

IAS 29 versus revoking the stable measuring unit assumption.

Restatement in terms of the hyperinflation rate as required by International Accounting Standard IAS 29 Financial Reporting in Hyperinflationary Economies is simply the restatement of Historical Cost Accounting financial reports with the intention of making them more meaningful in a hyperinflationary economy like Zimbabwe.

Restated values become the actual new real values when the restated financial reports are accepted by a country´s tax authorities for the purpose of calculating annual taxes due.

The restated values will not be actual real values when the tax authorities do not accept them for the purpose of calculating annual taxes due.

IAS 29 has no effect at all on the hyper destruction of the real economy in a hyperinflationary country because restatement is not done on a daily basis in terms of a dialy index rate or a daily parallel hard currency rate. IAS 29 is almost a complete failure. It can stop the hyper destruction of the real economy in a country with hyperinflation if it required the daily restatement of all non-monetary items.


Revoking the stable measuring unit assumption will change the current accounting and economic paradigm from the Historical Cost paradigm to the Real Value paradigm in low, high and hyperinflationary economies.

The stable measuring unit assumption can be revoked in a single company, group of companies, single economy, economic region or world wide.

It will replace the Historical Cost Accounting model with the Real Value Accounting model. The current HCA model automatically becomes the RVA model only at zero inflation.

It will stop the perennial destruction of hundreds of billions of Euros of real value in the real economy world wide.

It will result in the automatic monthly updating in terms of the Consumer Price Index of salaries, wages, rents, fees, royalties, retainers, issued share capital, retained income, share premium and share discount account balances, trade debtors, trade creditors, income taxes, company taxes, value added taxes and all profit and loss account items, etc in non-hyperinflationary economies.

The above items will be updated on a daily basis in terms of a daily index rate or a daily parallel hard currency rate in a hyperinflationary economy.

It will result in 0% inflation only in the real economy with continued cash inflation in the cash economy.

The stable measuring unit assumption is a Historical Cost Accounting principle implemented by Chartered Accountants only for the purpose of valuing the above constant value items never or not fully updated.

Chartered Accountants unwittingly destroy the real economy in this manner.

Friday 16 May 2008

Stop Chartered Accountants from destroying the real economy and everyone will gain.

Get Chartered Accountants to admit that the Rand is not stable and that changes in its general purchasing power are sufficiently important to require adjustments to the basic financial statements and the following will happen automatically:

1. Salaries, wages, taxes, issued share capital, retained income and all constant items will be updated monthly with the change in the CPI;

2. CA´s will stop destroying hundreds of billions of Rand in real value in the real economy each and every year(how can they sleep at night?);

3. GDP and sustainable economic growth will increase;

4. It will be IMPOSSIBLE for inflation and hyperinflation to destroy the SA real economy like it did in Zimbabwe.

Wednesday 14 May 2008

Higher interest rates

"The benefits of price stability, on the other hand, can scarcely be overestimated, especially as these are, in principle, unlimited in duration and accrue year after year." Deutsche Bundesbank 1996 Annual Report, Page 83.

Only if higher interest rates bring down inflation will it benefit the man in the street - and also attract foreign investment.

Price stability is a year on year increase in the CPI of 0%. A HIGH DEGREE of price stability is a year on year increase in the CPI of 2%.

SA should have an upper limit for cash or monetary inflation of 2% like the Euro and the USD - AND SA should stop the stable measuring unit assumption by an act of parliament which will result in 0% inflation ONLY in the REAL economy and prevent the destruction of the SA real economy by inflation or hyperinflation.

One of the basic principles in accounting is “The Measuring Unit principle: The unit of measure in accounting shall be the base money unit of the most relevant currency.

This principle also assumes the unit of measure is stable; that is, changes in its general purchasing power are not considered sufficiently important to require adjustments to the basic financial statements.” Paul H. Walgenbach, Norman E. Dittrich and Ernest I. Hanson, (1973), Financial Accounting, New York: Harcourt Brace Javonovich, Inc. Page 429.