FASB issues Interpretation no. 45, Guarantor's Accounting and Disclosure Requirements for Guarantees, Including Indirect Guarantees of Indebtedness of Others. (Accounting).

* FASB issues Interpretation no. 45, Guarantor's Accounting and Disclosure Requirements for Guarantees, Including Indirect Guarantees of Indebtedness of Others. It adds to guidance in FASB Statement no. 5, Accounting for Contingencies; Statement no. 57, Related Party Disclosures; and Statement no. 107, Disclosures About Fair Value of Financial Instruments, and it incorporates without change the provisions of Interpretation no. 34, Disclosure of Indirect Guarantees of Indebtedness of Others, which it supersedes. The document addresses the need for better reporting of guarantees companies issue in conjunction with certain transactions, as when a seller guarantees its customer's repayment of funds borrowed to pay the seller for the customer's purchases. There are exceptions to the guidance's applicability, among which are guarantee contracts insurance companies issue. The interpretation's initial recognition and measurement provisions apply prospectively to guarantees issued or modified after December 31, 2002, regardless of when the guarantor's fiscal year ends. Its disclosure requirements are effective for financial statements of interim or annual periods ending after December 15, 2002. Copies of the interpretation can be obtained online at http://store.yahoo. com/fasbpubs/i45.html or by calling 800-748-0659.