The purpose of financial statements in accordance with the basic framework for the preparation and presentation of financial statements is to provide information regarding the financial position, performance and changes in financial position of an enterprise that is useful to a wide range of users in making economic decisions.
Financial statements prepared for this purpose meet the common needs of most users. However, financial statements do not provide all the information that users may need in making economic decisions because they generally reflect the financial effects of past events, and are not required to provide non-financial information.
The financial statements also show what management has done (stewardship), or management's responsibility for the resources entrusted to it. Users who wish to assess what has been done or the responsibility of management do so so that they can make economic decisions; these decisions may include, for example, decisions to hold or sell their investment in the company or decisions to reappoint or replace management.