SBR*** P2 December 2013 Exam was.. Post your comments ***

Changes in accounting policies is a current issue?

it was a very bad exam, i hope i got some elements of the cash flows right Q1b & c were done good Q2 had little issues, but i think i could had written more Q3 a part was very confusing b & c part were averagely done I attempted 100% but i am not very confident to pass :(

Disappointed with questions 3 & 4 not what I expected at all, especially when question 4 as I hadnt even seen that as a current issue out of all the technical articles and the like. Disappointed and frustrated.

I thought q1 was ok fairly complex cash flow but doable for the most part. Q2 not too bad, q3 part a was so confusing to read in the end I just moved on, part b had a good guess part c took me ages to read it so I just wrote down anything I thought was relevant about control / influence but didn't conclude whether they had treated it correctly. Hoping I get through on first 2 questions but who knows, sounds like everyone found it pretty nasty though!

That was tough. Q1b was strange as it asked you how to deal with the 2 different loans? Anyone get that? Q3 Lental and Bental drove me mental and I did Q4 and Q2 which were ok but I'm with you guys - is that a current issue? I was expecting IFRS9, IAS39 or the leases project for Q4. Cash flow was long!

Q1 was ok so as Q2 but Q3 I though is it really part of syllabus as haven't got a clue how to approach the answer. I also thought that Q4 seems to be current issues question and on ACCA examinable documents IAS 8 is not mentioned at all. All those current articles I did just wasted and ended up doing Q3 which was horrible. I'm definitely doing this paper in June.

Q1 although I had not prepared for cash flows but still new the basics adjust non cash and put it cash flows so got throw well and on time and then took a break for prayer and had to go to toilet so after 10 minutes break my nightmare begins

Cash flow was nice except adj 1. refurbishment cost and govt grant. .. and the building revalued without any info of dep for the yaer. it was really confusing. i did get tax right. For q 2 and 3, it seemed to me like examiner wanted to ask all the rarely asked topics all in this attempt. I had done a very thorough stud this tym and so managed to write. many of the students leaving for my hall complained they didn get which IAS applies

Question 1 ok but was out 12m on my cash flow so at the very least 1 mistake made in calculations, part b & c not too bad. Q3 looked horrible so settled for 2 & 4, hoping I picked up enough points there for a pass!?? Wasn't expecting IAS8 as current issue but looked more doable than q3.

Who can provide answers for Cash flow? Any one had agreed the movement and the cash balance? I was unable to finish the paper - 15pts loss. I think the revaluation in the cash flow, the subs acquisition & PPE was hard? Any one got them right????

How much for tax? How to get it?

Q1 cashflow 110 cash movement? Working cap 41 inv 58 rec (210) payables. Contributions 9. Tax 129.5. Finance 10 sales proceeds for fa 40 profit 14? Goodwill imp 25 and 90 intangibles. Pension benefit remove 8 depreciation 29. Reval gain of 7. Govt grant 2 cash share issue 225 div paid 16. Div rec 3. Q2a rev rec? 2b ifrs 5 held for sale? 2c sale and lease back. Q3 confusing as hell.... got nci treated correctly? 3b fvtpl n cf hedge treated correct? 3c ifrs 3 bental acquirer

How was the deferred tax calculated? I deducted the tax base from the carrying values of the assets too and added to my tax working

Q1 cashflow was relatively good, and Q3 part b and c, Q2 and Q4 was very horrible, IAS 8 was brought in full detailed question, I expected current issues to be in Q4 to those updated in articles, overall, i assume this is the toughest paper at all times comparing to previous sitting for p2

I also thought there are so many areas in syllabus but why only test on groups too much. Q3 A and C was also to do with business combinations NCI stuff etc. Thats the problem with P2 if you don't get to do Q4, your margin of error is so small as the case in this exam Q3 was horrible so if you think of scoring average on all questions, you get a hard time.

I found it difficult to work out exactly what the question was asking for in q's 2 and 3. You spend so much time learning everything would it be so hard for the examiner to give a little direction at times rather then expect you to guess at what is being asked? Q1 A) Cash flow - answer okish although messed up some of the calcs B) No idea what they where banging on about here? Wasn't sure the treatment of either i or ii the $3m cash bal and the $7m cash bal with different interest? Any ideas? And what did you write about the rest of part b? C) Liked the ethics bit think this went ok Q2) not great - what did you put for these? Q3) not great - what did you put for these? Q4) didn't attempt again thought this was going to be Financial Instruments current issues.

I did the same (not saying that I am correct though) ;-)

Very stupid and unfair exam. Had conversation with some other students. No one get all to understand what was really asked. I just wonder what the examiner really wants to test??? Knowledge? Skills? I'm sure nobody from qualified accountant can do this in 3 hours time without reading appropriate Standard. I also assume that not everyone trying to pass exam in the world is native English speaker and some expressions are really difficult to understand for English speakers. Who have done UK version?! What is the difference between UK GAAP and IFRS for deferred taxation? Many years I am doing year end accounts. 4 years in the UK. Never heard about any difference! Have gone through 3 audits from Big 4. I can assume that there are some, but not for 9 marks to discuss!!! I've tried to write all, but I think I didn't pass. Many areas tested in practice are not popular issues. Very disappointing not practical and unfair

Tax on sub was calc at fv minus tb as when u acquire an asset its at fv. So diff was 5 tax at 30%. =1.5?

Q2 NCI anyone treat this as a Financial Liability rather then NCI? Don't worry if not its extreamly likley I did this like most of the paper wrong!!

For q1 b I talked about the 3 different types of cash flows (operating, Investing and financing) explained what each is and why they are separated (ie to help users, not same as profit etc), then talked about the 2 investments I said that the second one was cash equivalent as entitled to interest even if withdraw in the first 12 months. No idea if right tho!!

Unexpected, unusual, unfair. IAS 8 in full details, looked more or less at a first glance, but in substance not so easy, not sure at if I put enough point on it Q4a - Discussion on policy selection – judgments, materiality - Discussion on changes of accounting policy, why user find it difficult - Errors correction and possible manipulations Q4b - Borrowing cost capitalized in 4m 2012 and 2m 2013 - Twice entered payable in the last year ledger - Change in depreciation method from straight-line to reducing balance (there was something confusing about consumption – so I thought it was not appropriate to change – not sure if it was right)

What did u guys get for q2 n 3 n 1b

Disaster ..never expect that Cash Flow statment will be examine for 35 marks..

Think the nic was q3 a) . I too treated it as a finance liability due to the fact there was a contractual obligation to pay the principle of b shares. Was dreading cash flow but I didn't think it was too bad. I got dt on in acq as $1.5m too which in turn increases the goodwill on acquisition. Had no idea about the borrowing costs part of ppe or the capital grant but think I got everything else. Part b I spit each section between the deposit / finace income and penLty. Discussed how each would be treated in soploci and consequently in the cash flow. Ie deduct the finance income and add the interest received. Re the 7m loan did any treat this as a financial asset instead of cash equivalent due to the fact it wasn't extremely liquid? There using amortized cost and discount to presnt value??? ( might be completely wrong here) ethics part was straight forward enough. Q 2 a was rev recognition of services . Just talked about stages of completion and allocating revenue to the elements of the contract. B was asset held for sale and whether or not proviso s should be accounted for under 3 scenarios. Not 100% on that one. Spoke Bout ifr5 the concentrate on each of the 3 items and how they should have been Ccontes for. I don't think any needed a provision. Part c was sale and lease back cv 4.2m fv 5m and different sp. of 5m or 6m or 4.8m or 4m. I said that for both. Sale price of 5 or 4.8 a profit is recognised and charged to pl. sale price of 6 there was profit of 0.8 and 1m was treated as a loan and spread over the life of the lease. Sp of 4 was a loss to pl. Q3 was next. I just discussed was an nic should be. That is fb of nic at acquisition plus share of post acq profits. Further more said should be finance liability as contractual right to repay the holders. (Min of 3ys ) Part b was hedging. Hate hedging but think I got enough down like can only hedge any item at inception . So could not use the associate . Part c was hell. Had no idea. Just waffled on what little I know about combinations. Hated this part the most. Didn't look at q4 in depth but didn't revised on my current issues. Was predicting debt vs equity which would have been my knight in shining armour. I revised really well for this exam but thought the exam was horrible overall. No main topics any where.., where was NCA / sbp / financial instruments / pensions. Income taxes . I will be incredibly lucky if I pass this exam

Q1 b) two 12 months deposits, if remember right 3,5% can be withdrawn but 21 days prior notice – no intention to withdraw 3% can be withdrawn but 14 days prior notice. If terminated earlier – only 2% like on short term deposits. Company wants to keep in available (so I thought they can withdraw it any time) I stated it is a current asset (again not sure – 12 months, on the edge), can be classified as C&CE because short term <3 months, although a prior notice required it’s only 14-21 days (have no idea what the point was to put this 14-21 days, any ideas?) It is not prudent to accrue interest on 12 month on the deposit which is likely to be withdrawn earlier, so 2% only as it goes in time Disclosures required in the notes on limitation to use C&CE (again written something about these stupid 14 & 21 days)

I really don't understant what the examiner is trying to achieve!!! I have covered so many technical articles, read all the current issues, covered most of the standards and many consolidations revisions. This was to give myself a better chance of passing. I was so dissapointed with the paper. Most of the Q2 and Q3 was only put there to confuse us. The examiner chose small areas of the subject and then he tried to confuse us with the words. This does not even begin to resemble the actual world. So well done to the examiner for making the paper less relavant to corporate reporting. Having said that Q1 was good but i don't think that is enough to pass!!

Does anybody remember what was about the deferred tax on goodwill? was it taxable? I think I wrote it was a permanent difference (((

Thank God cash-flow came. Hopefully done enough to pass . I went for question 1,2&3 P2 books for sale any one interested? I am sure I will not need it again

I may be incorrect but the th fair value was 20 and the tax base was 15. Therefore a temp dif of 5m at 30% is 1.5m. This then needed to be deduced from the fair value of assets acquired. So goodwill was 30 less fav of na of 20 less the dt of 1.5. So goodwill was 11.5. (That's what I calculated anyway). So this increases the impairment of goodwill to be added back in operating activities.