Information should be relevant to the decision making needs
of the user. Information is relevant if it helps users of the financial
statements in predicting future trends of the business (Predictive Value) or
confirming or correcting any past predictions they have made (Confirmatory
Value). Same piece of information which assists users in confirming their past
predictions may also be helpful in forming future forecasts.
Example 1
A company discloses an increase in Earnings Per Share (EPS)
from $5 to $6 since the last reporting period. The information is relevant to
investors as it may assist them in confirming their past predictions regarding
the profitability of the company and will also help them in forecasting future
trend in the earnings of the company.
Relevance is affected by the materiality of information
contained in the financial statements because only material information
influences the economic decisions of its users.
Example 2
A default by a customer who owes $1000 to a company having
net assets of worth $10 million is not relevant to the decision making needs of
users of the financial statements.
However, if the amount of default is, say, $2 million, the
information becomes relevant to the users as it may affect their view regarding
the financial performance and position of the company.
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