Industrial profitability in the trans-World War II period, 1938-1950

World War II had major effects on the British economy, yet we know very little about wartime levels of profitability, despite their importance to individual businessmen, to signalling mechanisms for resource allocation, and to social cohesion under wartime conditions. The Companies Acts of 1947-1948...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Accounting history review 2017-03, Vol.27 (1), p.101-114
Main Author: Arnold, A. J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Companies Acts (1947-1948)
Profit
Profitability
profiteering
Profits
rates of return
secret reserve accounting
World War II
World War II profit levels
World War Two
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Summary:World War II had major effects on the British economy, yet we know very little about wartime levels of profitability, despite their importance to individual businessmen, to signalling mechanisms for resource allocation, and to social cohesion under wartime conditions. The Companies Acts of 1947-1948 greatly improved corporate disclosures and brought many existing secret reserves to the surface. This study analyses the publicly filed information of a set of major UK-quoted companies in order to provide a consistent series of profit rates for British industry and thereby add to our knowledge of the trans-war period 1938-1950.
ISSN:2155-2851
2155-286X
DOI:10.1080/21552851.2016.1246255