Recently Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted

In December 2007, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 141(R), Business Combinations, which replaces Statement No. 141. Statement No. 141(R) retains the fundamental requirements of Statement No. 141 that an acquirer be identified and the acquisition method of accounting (previously called the purchase method) be used for all business combinations. Statement No. 141(R)'s scope is broader than that of Statement No. 141, which applied only to business combinations in which control was obtained by transferring consideration. By applying the acquisition method to all transactions and other events in which one entity obtains control over one or more other businesses, Statement No. 141(R) improves the comparability of the information about business combinations provided in financial reports. Statement No. 141(R) establishes principles and requirements for how an acquirer recognizes and measures identifiable assets acquired, liabilities assumed and any noncontrolling interest in the acquiree, as well as any resulting goodwill. Statement No. 141(R) applies prospectively to business combinations for which the acquisition date is on or after the beginning of the first annual reporting period beginning on or after December 15, 2008. We will evaluate how the new requirements of Statement No. 141(R) would impact any business combinations completed in 2009 or thereafter.

In December 2007, the FASB also issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 160, Noncontrolling Interests in Consolidated Financial Statements—an amendment of Accounting Research Bulletin No. 51. A noncontrolling interest, sometimes called a minority interest, is the portion of equity in a subsidiary not attributable, directly or indirectly, to a parent. Statement No. 160 establishes accounting and reporting standards for the noncontrolling interest in a subsidiary and for the deconsolidation of a subsidiary. Under Statement No. 160, noncontrolling interests in a subsidiary must be reported as a component of consolidated equity separate from the parent's equity. Additionally, the amounts of consolidated net income attributable to both the parent and the noncontrolling interest must be reported separately on the face of the income statement. Statement No. 160 is effective for fiscal years beginning on or after December 15, 2008 and earlier adoption is prohibited. We do not expect the adoption of Statement No. 160 to have a material impact on our financial statements and related disclosures.