Indicators of impairment

The impact of climate-related matters on impairment testing of non-current assets

IAS 36 Impairment of Assets requires a company to assess at each reporting date whether there is any indication that an asset or cash-generating unit (CGU) may be impaired1. The accounting standard also contains a non-exhaustive list of internal, external and other indicators of impairment. [IAS 36.9, 12–13] 

Although climate-related factors, such as those in the diagram below, are not mentioned explicitly in IAS 36, they could lead to one or more of the internal or external indicators of impairment listed in the accounting standard.

indicators of impairment diagram

Climate-related impairment indicators can be present in companies across all sectors or industries – they are not confined to a specific sector or industry.

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1 Irrespective of any indicator of impairment, IAS 36 requires goodwill, intangible assets with indefinite useful lives and intangible assets not yet available for use to be tested for impairment at least annually.