Businesses use accounting to create financial statements and analyze the contents of those statements to keep track of their finances. In order for that information to be meaningful and represent companies fairly across the board, they all have to play by the same set of rules. Those principles are what we'll be talking about in this course. The principles of accounting include the various standards used throughout the world and why and how they differ. We'll discuss the U.S. standard, in particular, and some of the most important principles within it. These principles aim to make financial reporting useful to both investors and creditors, as well as those involved in making financial decisions and improving company performance.