01682nas a2200169   4500008004100000245005900041210005900100260000900159300001200168490000700180520114500187653001501332100001801347700002201365700002701387856009801414       2003                        eng d00aDecision usefulness of joint venture reporting methods0 aDecision usefulness of joint venture reporting methods  c2003  a123-1370 v173 aDepending on the country and circumstances, reporting rules for intercor- porate investments may require the cost method, the equity method, proportionate consolidation, or full consolidation, and may yield dramatically different accounting num- bers. In the post-Enron environment there is a particular focus on investments for which liabilities remain off balance sheet. We compare the information content of alternative accounting treatments for a sample of Canadian firms reporting joint ventures under proportionate consolidation. We restate their financial statements using the equity method, and we compare the information content of the two accounting methods in predicting accounting return on common shareholders' equity. We find evidence consistent with the view that financial statements prepared under proportionate consolidation provide better predictions of future return on shareholders' equity than do financial statements prepared under the equity method. We conclude that, for these firms, proportionate consolidation provides information with greater predictive ability and greater relevance than does the equity method.10aAccounting1 aGraham, Roger1 aKing, Raymond, D.1 aMorrill, Cameron, K.J.  u/biblio/decision-usefulness-joint-venture-reporting-methods-0