In its statement, WorldCom said that “as a result of an internal audit of the company’s capital expenditure accounting, it was determined that certain transfers from line cost expenses to capital accounts during this period were not made in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.”

The American business community prides itself on having the most rigorous and transparent accounting standards in the world, and there's still a great deal of truth to that despite the recent spectacular accounting scandals.

It is however getting harder to counter the trend towards uniform international accounting standards by claiming that well, they're just not good enough for the USA. What good is having the "toughest and best" standards if inadequate enforcement allows colossal disasters like Enron and now Worldcom to occur?

This isn't an endorsement of the international standards, but rather to point out that our objections to them have been severely undercut by recent events.

http://www.iasc.org.uk

The economic and financial crisis which began in 1998 in certain Asian countries and spread to other regions of the world showed the need for reliable and transparent accounting and financial reporting to support sound decision-making by investors, lenders and regulatory authorities.

In 1998, G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors committed themselves to endeavour to ensure that private sector institutions in their countries comply with internationally agreed principles, standards and codes of best practice. They called on all countries which participate in global capital markets similarly to commit to comply with these internationally agreed codes and standards.

Many countries already endorse International Accounting Standards as their own either without amendment or else with minor additions or deletions. Furthermore, important developments are taking place in the European Union, where the European Commission is progressing proposals that will require all listed companies in the European Union to prepare their consolidated financial statements using International Accounting Standards. Already, both inside and outside the EU, many leading companies have stated that they prepare their financial reports in accordance with International Accounting Standards.