Discuss Accounting Standard (AS)-18-Related party transactions along with disclosures required to be made by the reporting enterprise.

Accounting Standard 18 'Related Party Transactions' is applied in reporting related party relationships and transactions between a reporting enterprise and its related parties. Related party disclosure requirements do not apply in circumstances where providing such disclosure would conflict with the reporting enterprise's duties of confidentiality as specifically required in terms of a statute or by any regulator. It is stated that no disclosure is required in consolidated financial statements in respect of intra-group transactions. Also no disclosure is required in the financial statement of state controlled enterprises as regards related party relationship with other state controlled enterprises and transactions with such enterprises. If there have been transactions between related parties, during the existence of a related party relationship the reporting enterprise should disclose: the name of the transacting related party; description of the relationship between the parties; description of the nature of the transactions; volume of transactions either as an amount or as an appropriate proportion; any other elements of the related party transactions necessary for an understanding of the financial statements; the amounts or appropriate propositions of outstanding items pertaining to related parties at the balance sheet date and provision for doubtful debts due from such parties at that date; and the amounts written off or written back in the period in respect of debts due from or to related parties. Items of a similar nature may be disclosed in aggregate by type of related party.