後進先出（FIFO）和先入先出（FIFO ）是兩種最常見的存貨核算方法。小企業選擇什麼樣的存貨會計方法直接影響其資產負債表、損益表和現金流量表。公司不僅要跟踪銷售的項目數量，而且還要跟踪每個項目的成本。這兩種方法對公司的財務報表都有不同的影響。為了理解這一點，考慮庫存是如何確定的。
如何確定期末存貨
庫存可分為三類：原材料、在製品和成品。原材料是用來生產出售資產的存貨。在製品包括生產中出售的資產。製成品是出售的資產。庫存公式為：
期初存貨 + 淨採購 - 銷貨成本 = 期末存貨
對庫存、LIFO和FIFO進行評估的兩種常見方法可以給出顯著不同的結果。
後進先出法（LIFO）
後進先出法假設貨架上的最後一個項目是銷售的第一個項目。最後，先進先出是一個很好的系統使用時，您的產品不易腐或風險迅速過時。在LIFO下，當價格上漲時，高價商品先出售，低價產品留在庫存中。這新增了公司銷售商品的成本，降低了其淨收入，這兩個因素都降低了公司的納稅義務。
這種存貨計價方法很少接近存貨的替代成本，這是它的缺點之一。此外，它可能不符合實際的貨流。
先進先出法（FIFO）
另一方面，先進先出法假設放在貨架上的第一件物品是首先出售的物品，所以最古老的物品是首先出售的。該系統通常用於庫存易逝或快速淘汰的公司。如果價格上漲，先進先出法會給你較低的商品銷售成本，因為你首先使用的是舊的、更便宜的商品。你的底線在銀行家和投資者看來會更好，但是你的稅負會更高，因為你有更高的利潤。因為先進先出法代表了最近購買的成本，它通常更準確地反映替換成本。
後進先出法對財務報表的問題
如果你的公司開始銷售存貨的速度快於它取代存貨的速度，後進先出法會計會產生一個數學結果，這個結果不再精確地表示現實世界中的情况。
當你在存貨减少的情况下使用後進先出法會計方法時，你的資產負債表很快就會與你的實際財務狀況沒有多大關係，因為你最近的成本變成了假定的銷售貨物的實際成本。但隨著庫存下降，你開始銷售的貨物實際上是在很短的時間內獲得的。這些早期成本仍然存在於存貨帳戶中。其結果是，報告的資產餘額與當前價格的商品成本沒有關係。
存貨會計只是公司存貨管理的一部分，但卻是重要的一部分。
Basic Inventory Accounting
First
in first out (FIFO) and first in first out (FIFO) are the two most common
inventory accounting methods. What kind of inventory accounting method a small
enterprise chooses directly affects its balance sheet, income statement and
cash flow statement. The company not only tracks the number of items sold, but
also the cost of each item. These two methods have different effects on the
company's financial statements. To understand this, consider how inventory is
determined.
How to Determine End-of-Period Inventory
Inventory can be divided
into three categories: raw materials, in-process products and finished
products. Raw materials are stocks used to produce and sell assets. Products in
process include assets sold in production. Manufactured goods are assets for
sale. The inventory formula is:
Initial Inventory + Net Purchase - Cost of Sale = End Inventory
Two
common methods for inventory, LIFO and FIFO evaluation can give significantly
different results.
LIFO
The LIFO method assumes
that the last item on the shelf is the first item to be sold. Finally, FIFO is
a good system to use, your product is not easy to rot or risk quickly obsolete.
Under LIFO, when prices rise, high-priced goods are sold first, while
low-priced products remain in stock. This increases the cost of selling goods
and reduces the net income of the company, both of which reduce the tax
liability of the company.
This
inventory valuation method seldom approaches the replacement cost of inventory,
which is one of its shortcomings. In addition, it may not correspond to the
actual flow of goods.
FIFO
On the other hand, FIFO
assumes that the first item on the shelf is the first item to be sold, so the
oldest item is the first item to be sold. The system is usually used for
companies with perishable or rapidly phased-out stocks. If the price rises,
FIFO will give you a lower cost of selling goods, because you first use old,
cheaper goods. Your bottom line looks better to bankers and investors, but your
tax burden is higher because you have higher profits. Because FIFO represents
the cost of recent purchases, it usually reflects the replacement cost more
accurately.
LIFO Method for Financial Statements
If your company starts
selling inventory faster than it replaces inventory, LIFO accounting produces a
mathematical result that no longer accurately represents what is going on in
the real world.
When
you use the LIFO accounting method in the case of reduced inventory, your
balance sheet will soon have little to do with your actual financial position,
because your recent cost becomes the assumed actual cost of selling goods. But
as inventory drops, the goods you start selling are actually acquired in a very
short time. These early costs still exist in the inventory account. As a
result, the reported balance of assets has nothing to do with the cost of goods
at current prices.
Inventory
accounting is only a part of the company's inventory management, but it is an
important part.
