Problem -
Joe Kang is owner and audit partner for Han, Kang & Lee, LLC. As the audit on Frost Systems was reaching its concluding stages on January 31, 2016, Kang met with Kate Boller, the CFO, to discuss the inventory measurement of one it's highly valued products as of December 31, 2015. Kang told Boller that a write-down of 20 percent had to be made because the net realizable value of the inventory was 20 percent less than the original cost recorded on its books. That meant the earnings for the year would be reduced by $2 million and the client would show a loss for the year. In a heated exchange with Boller, Kang was told to use the January 31, 2016, value, which reflected a full recovery of the market amount. Boller suggested that subsequent values were acceptable under GAAP. Besides, she said that was the method the previous auditors had used. She went on to explain that the market value for this product was known to be volatile and a smoothing effect was justified in the accounting procedures.
Based on the information above please answer this question:
Do you think the client's accounting approach to the market valuation of the inventory was acceptable under GAAP? Include in your discussion a brief explaination of why fair value measurements are difficult.