This is an individual research assignment that consists of three parts. In Part A students will review the audit reports for 2018 and 2019 for three (3) ASX companies (Suncorp, Commonwealth Bank and NAB) and answer the three (3) questions below. In Part B, students will review KAMs further and provide insights on the risks associated with the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020

Part A

Review the audit reports for 2018 and 2019 for Suncorp, Commonwealth Bank and NAB. With reference to ASA 701, consider the Key Audit Matters (KAMs) noted by the auditors and then discuss:

1. What has changed, for each company, between the audits of 2018 and 2019? Refer only to audit procedures.
2. How does the description of KAMs differ between audits undertaken by, KPMG, PWC and Ernst & Young for those three (3) companies?
3. How well do KAMs communicate key risks and audit procedures to the users of audited financial statements? Do you think KAMs improve informational value for investors? Explain.

   Part B

   Read and understand the findings from both Kend & Nguyen (2020) and Kend & Nguyen (2022) * studies, available on Canvas. Then answer the following questions:

4. Over the three (3) year period (2018, 2019, 2020) calculate the average reported KAMs for Suncorp, Commonwealth Bank and NAB separately. How do these results compare to the Banking industry average reported in Kend and Nguyen (2020)? Discuss your answer. Then calculate the average number of audit procedures per KAM disclosed for each company. Report your findings in a tabular format.

5. Examine the KAMs section of the audit reports for each company from 2020 and explain how the COVID-19 pandemic may have impacted reported key audit risks. How does your investigation compare to the overall reported findings in Kend and Nguyen (2022)?

   *Kend, M., and L. Nguyen, (2020), Investigating Recent Audit Reform in the Australian Context: An Analysis of the KAM Disclosures in Audit Reports 2017-2018, International Journal of Auditing, Vol. 24 (3), p. 412.

   *Kend, M., and L. Nguyen, (2022), Key audit risks and audit procedures during the initial year of the COVID-19 pandemic: An analysis of audit reports

   2019-2020, Managerial Auditing Journal, (in press), DOI 10.1108/MAJ-07-2021-3225.