Carnival Cruises 2004 Annual Report Download - page 34

Carnival Corporation & plc 31
Report of Independent Registered Certified Public Accounting Firm
To the Boards of Directors and Shareholders of Carnival Corporation and Carnival plc:
We have completed an integrated audit of Carnival Corporation & plc’s November 30, 2004 consolidated financial
statements and of its internal control over financial reporting as of November 30, 2004 and audits of its 2003 and 2002
consolidated financial statements in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board
(United States). Our opinions, based on our audits, are presented below.
Consolidated financial statements
In our opinion, the accompanying consolidated balance sheets and the related consolidated statements of operations,
cash flows and shareholders’ equity present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Carnival Corporation
& plc (comprising Carnival Corporation and Carnival plc and their respective subsidiaries, the “Company”) at November 30,
2004 and November 30, 2003, and the results of their operations and their cash flows for each of the three years in
the period ended November 30, 2004 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States
of America. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to
express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits of these statements
in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards
require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are
free of material misstatement. An audit of financial statements includes examining, on a test basis, evidence support-
ing the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting principles used and significant
estimates made by management, and evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our
audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Internal control over financial reporting
Also, in our opinion, management’s assessment, included in the accompanying Management’s Report on Internal
Control Over Financial Reporting appearing in this 2004 Annual Report, that the Company maintained effective internal
control over financial reporting as of November 30, 2004 based on criteria established in Internal Control—Integrated
Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”), is fairly
stated, in all material respects, based on those criteria. Furthermore, in our opinion, the Company maintained, in all
material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of November 30, 2004, based on criteria estab-
lished in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the COSO. The Company’s management is responsible for
maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal
control over financial reporting. Our responsibility is to express opinions on management’s assessment and on the
effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audit. We conducted our audit of
internal control over financial reporting in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight
Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance
about whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. An audit of
internal control over financial reporting includes obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting,
evaluating management’s assessment, testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal con-
trol, and performing such other procedures as we consider necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audit
provides a reasonable basis for our opinions.
A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regard-
ing the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those poli-
cies and procedures that (i) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect
the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (ii) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are
recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations
of management and directors of the company; and (iii) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely
detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on
the financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstate-
ments. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may
become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures
may deteriorate.
Miami, Florida
February 11, 2005