accounting&auditing

LONDON - Oil was near $90 a barrel Monday after falling to its lowest in eight months earlier in the session, pressured by expectations the global credit crisis will bring a sharp drop in oil demand.

US light crude from November delivery fell by $3.84 a barrel to $90.04, its fourth day of losses. It touched a session low of $88.89, its lowest since early February. Prices have dropped by nearly 40 percent from a peak of $147.27 on July 11.

London Brent crude was down $3.86 at $86.39 a barrel. "The prevailing macro sentiment is now crystallizing around the notion that we are heading into a synchronized global slow-down, a mirror image of the across-the-board expansion we saw from 2004 to early 2007," said Edward Meir of broker MF Global.

An external audit program encompasses engaging an independent auditor to perform a full-scope financial statement audit, a balance-sheet-only audit, an attestation of internal controls over financial reporting, or other agreed-upon external audit procedures. Outsourced or co-sourced internal audit activities are not considered part of an external audit program.
An effective external audit function often provides the board of directors and management with:

• Reasonable assurance about the effectiveness of internal controls over financial reporting, the accuracy and timeliness in recording transactions, and the accuracy and completeness of financial and regulatory reports.

• An independent and objective view of a bank’s activities, including processes relative to financial reporting.

• Information useful to directors and management in maintaining a bank’s risk management processes.