What is the main purpose of an audit?

The main purpose of an audit is to provide an independent assessment of financial statements. This process involves examining the financial records and supporting documents of an organization to ensure accuracy, compliance with accounting standards, and reliability of reported information. An independent auditor evaluates whether the financial statements present a true and fair view of the organization's financial position and performance.

This independent assessment is crucial because it lends credibility to the financial statements, which are often used by various stakeholders such as investors, creditors, and regulators to make informed decisions. An auditor's report can help instill confidence in the financial information provided by the organization, ensuring that it can be trusted by external parties.

While preparing financial statements and improving internal control processes are important aspects of financial reporting and management, they are not the primary objective of an audit. Similarly, forecasting future financial performance is a forward-looking process that typically falls outside the scope of an audit's objective, which is focused on evaluating historical financial data.