Warranty Reserve We maintain a warranty reserve that reflects management’s best estimate of the cost to replace product that does not meet customers’ specifications and performance requirements. The warranty reserve is based upon a historical product return rate, adjusted for any specific known conditions or circumstances. Adjustments to the warranty reserve are recorded in cost of goods sold. Foreign Currency Translation Certain operating activities in Asia and Europe are denominated in local currency, considered to be the functional currency. Assets and liabilities of these operations are translated using exchange rates in effect at the end of the year, and revenue and costs are translated using weighted-average exchange rates for the year. The related translation adjustments are reported in comprehensive income in stockholders’ equity. of a 300 millimeter polishing tool and related metrology equipment, all of which are part of the K.K., as well as for general business purposes. Since settlement of the notes is expected in the foreseeable future, and our subsidiary has been consistently making timely payments on the loans, the loans are considered foreigncurrency transactions. Therefore the associated foreign exchange gains and losses are recognized as other income or expense rather than being deferred in the cumulative translation account in other comprehensive income. We also maintain intercompany loan agreements between some of our wholly-owned foreign subsidiaries, including Cabot Microelectronics Singapore Pte. Ltd., Epoch Material Co., Ltd. in Taiwan and Hanguk Cabot Microelectronics, LLC in South Korea. These loans have provided funds for the construction and operation of our research, development and manufacturing facility in South Korea. These loans are also considered foreign currency transactions and are accounted for in the same manner as our intercompany loans to the K.K. Foreign Exchange Management We transact business in various foreign currencies, primarily the Japanese yen and New Taiwan dollar. Our exposure to foreign currency exchange risks has not been significant because a large portion of our business is denominated in U.S. dollars. However, there was a significant weakening of the U.S. dollar against the Japanese yen during our fiscal years 2010 and 2011, which had some negative impact on our results of operations. As noted in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2011, the negative effects of foreign exchange rate changes, primarily related to the Japanese yen, accounted for an approximate 1.5 percentage point decline in our gross profit margin in fiscal 2011 compared to fiscal 2010. Periodically we enter into forward foreign exchange contracts in an effort to mitigate the risks associated with currency fluctuations on certain foreign currency balance sheet exposures. Our foreign exchange contracts do not qualify for hedge accounting under the accounting rules for derivative instruments. See Note 10 for a more detailed discussion of derivative financial instruments. Purchase Commitments We have entered into unconditional purchase obligations, which include noncancelable purchase commitments and take-or-pay arrangements with suppliers. We review our agreements and make an assessment of the likelihood of a shortfall in purchases and determine if it is necessary to record a liability. Revenue Recognition Revenue from CMP consumable products is recognized when title is transferred to the customer, provided acceptance and collectability are reasonably assured. Title transfer generally occurs upon shipment to the customer or when inventory held on consignment is consumed by the customer, subject to the terms and conditions of the particular customer arrangement. We have consignment agreements with a number of our customers that require, at a minimum, monthly consumption reports that enable us to record revenue and inventory usage in the appropriate period. We market our products through distributors in a few areas of the world. We recognize revenue upon shipment and when title is transferred to the distributor. We do not have any arrangements with distributors that include payment terms, rights of return, or rights of exchange outside the normal course of business, or any other significant matters that would impact the timing of revenue recognition. Intercompany Loan Accounting We maintain intercompany loan agreements with our wholly-owned subsidiary, Nihon Cabot Microelectronics K.K. (“the K.K.”), under which we provided funds to the K.K. to finance the purchase of certain assets from our former Japanese branch at the time of the establishment of this subsidiary, for the purchase of land adjacent to our Geino, Japan, facility, for the construction of our Asia Pacific technology center, and for the purchase 42