Fundamental One Module Editted
Fundamental One Module Editted
Fundamental One Module Editted
Chapter one
Introduction to Accounting and Business
ACCOUNTING: is the process of identifying, recording and communicating economic events of an
organization to the interested users. Let’s take a c loser look at these three activities. The first one is
identifying which means selecting economic events. The next activity is recording; which contain
recording, classifying and summarizing the transactions. And the last activity is communicating; which
reflects preparing report then analyzes and interprets to the users.
1.1. The nature of a business
A business is an organization in which basic resources re assembled and processed to provide goods or
services to customer. It is the activity of making one’s living or making money by producing or buying
and selling products (goods and services). It comes in all size that means from local coffee to large
corporation. The objective of most businesses is to maximize profits. Profit is the difference between
the amounts received from customers for goods or services provided and the amounts paid for the inputs
used to provide the goods or services.
Some businesses operate with an objective other than to maximize profits. The objective of such
nonprofit businesses is to provide some benefit to society. In other cases, governmental units such as
cities operate water works sewage treatment plants on a nonprofit basis. However the focus of this
course is businesses operating to earn a profit.
Types of businesses
There are three major types of business:
Manufacturing businesses: a business in which change basic inputs into products that are sold to
individual customers. E.g. zebider beer, Coca-cola, Sony, Nike, General Motors
Merchandising businesses: by which purchase products and also resell products to customers.
However, rather than making the products, they purchase them from other businesses (such as
manufacturers). It brings product and customer together E.g. Wal-Mart, Amazon.com
Service giving businesses: it provides services rather than products to customers. It is based on the
profession. E.g. Air Lines, Hospitals
has unlimited liability. A proprietorship is a separate entity for accounting purposes but it is not a
separate legal entity from the owners. That is, from the legal point of view, the owner and the business
are treated as one and the same. The owner will be held personally responsible for the debts and actions
of the business.
Partnership: is owned by two or more individuals. It has more financial resources than a proprietorship
and has additional management skills. Its disadvantage is unlimited liability. The partners share the
profits and losses of the partnership according to an agreed –on formula. The personal resources of each
partner can be called on to pay the obligations of the partnership. That is, each partner is personally
responsible for the debts of the partnership. From an accounting standpoint, however, a partnership is a
business entity separate from the personal activities of the partners.
Corporation: is organized under state or federal statutes as a separate legal taxable entity. The
ownership of a corporation is divided into shares of stock. A corporation issues the stock to individuals
or other businesses, who then become owners or stockholders of the corporation. Its advantage is the
ability to obtain large amounts of resources by issuing stocks. The stockholders are free to sell all or part
of their shares to other investors at any time. This ease of transfer of ownership adds to the attractiveness
of investing in a corporation.
Since a corporation is a separate legal entity, the stockholders are not personally liable for the debts of
the corporation. Their risk of loss is limited to the amount they paid (invested). Because of this limited
liability in a corporation shareholders are willing to invest in riskier, but potentially more profitable,
activities. Its disadvantage is double taxation.
Business Strategies
A business strategy is an integrated set of plans and actions designed to enable the business to gain an
advantage over its competitors, and in doing so, to maximize its profits. The two basic strategies a
business may use are a low-cost strategy or a differentiation strategy.
Low-cost strategy, a business designs and produces products or services of acceptable quality at a
cost lower than that of its competitors. A primary concern of a business using a low-cost strategy is
that a competitor may achieve even lower costs by replicating the low costs or developing
technological advances
Differentiation strategy, a business designs and produces products or services that possess unique
attributes or characteristics for which customers are willing to pay a premium price. For the
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You may think of accounting as the “language of business.” This is because accounting is the means by
which business information is communicated to the stakeholders. Stakeholders use accounting reports as
a primary source of information on which they base their decisions. Stakeholders can be internal and
external.
Internal: These are persons that are directly involved in managing and operating an organization.
The area of accounting aimed at serving the decision-making needs of internal users is called
Management Accounting. E.g. Owners, managers and human resource
External: they are parties, which are not directly involved in running the business enterprise. The
area of accounting aimed at serving external users is called Financial Accounting. E.g. Customers,
creditors, employees, governments and others
1.3. The profession of Accounting
Accountants engage in either private accounting or public accounting.
Public accounting: Accountants and their staff who provide services on a fee basis. In public
accounting, an accountant may practice as an individual or as a member of a public accounting firm. A
major portion of public accounting practice is involved with Auditing. Public accountants who have met
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a state’s education, experience, and examination requirements may become Certified Public
Accountants (CPAs).
Several specialized field in accounting have evolved as a result of ever increasing rapid technological
advances and accelerated economic growth. Among the most important accounting fields are described
briefly in the following paragraphs.
Financial Accounting: - Concerned with the recording of transactions for a business enterprise or other
economic unit and the periodic preparation of various reports from such records. The report is a general-
purpose one that can equal is important in meeting the users’ interest. Financial Accounting reports are
prepared based on international financial reporting standard (IFRS).
Auditing: - as a specialized accounting field involving an independent review of the accounting records
during audit work, public accountants examine the records supporting the financial reports of an
enterprise and give an opinion regarding their fairness and reliability. Auditors' responsibility (job) may
take to forms.
i) Internal auditors: - those who are responsible about the operations of the business
(organization) to determine compliance with management policies and evaluating the
efficiency of operations.
ii) External auditors: - those examine the records supporting the financial statements of a firm
and give an opinion.
Cost Accounting: - particularly concerned with determination and control of the cost of producing
specific products. It is primarily concerned with the cost of manufacturing processes and of
manufactures products ultimately management uses these date in controlling current operations and in
planning for the future.
Managerial Accounting: - Uses both historical and estimated data in assisting management in daily
operations and planning future operations it deals with specific problems that confront enterprise
managers at various organizational levels. It is frequently concerned with identifying alternative courses
of action and then helping to select the best one.
Tax Accounting: - deals with the preparation of tax returns and the consideration of the tax
consequences of proposed business transactions or alternative courses of action. One specialized in this
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field should be well informed about tax statues, administrative regulations and court decisions on tax
cases.
Accounting system: - is the specialized field concerned with the design and implementation of
procedures for the accountant must device appropriate ―checks and balance‖ to safe guard business
properties and provide for information flow that will be efficient and helpful to management.
Budgetary Accounting: - presents the plan of financial operation for a period and through records and
summaries, provided comparisons of actual operation in the predetermined plan. A combination of
planning and controlling future operations, it is sometimes considered to be a part of managerial
accounting.
International Accounting: - is concerned with the special problems associated with international trade
of multinational business organizations, Accountants specializing in this area must be familiar with the
influences that custom, law and taxation of various countries bring to bear on international operations
and accounting principles.
Not-for-profit Accounting: - specializes in recording, reporting, and planning the operations of various
governmental units and other not-for-profit organizations such as churches, charities, and educational
institutions.
Social Accounting: - is a kind of specialization which emphasizes the measurement of social costs and
benefits.
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bodies have made efforts to reduce the differences between IFRS and U.S. GAAP. This process is
referred to as convergence. As a result of these convergence efforts, it is likely that someday there will
be a single set of high-quality accounting standards that are used by companies around the world.
The main international standard-setting organization is based in London, United Kingdom, and is
called International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). IFRS has the best potential to provide a
common platform on which companies can report and investors can compare financial information. It
is simpler and less stringent in its accounting and disclosure requirements. It is more principles-based.
Qualities of Useful Information
Recently, the IASB and FASB completed the first phase of a joint project in which they developed a
conceptual framework to serve as the basis for future accounting standards. The framework begins by
stating that the primary objective of financial reporting is to provide financial information that is useful
to investors and creditors for making decisions about providing capital. According to the IASB,
useful information should possess two fundamental qualities, relevance and faithful representation.
Relevance: Accounting information has relevance if it would make a difference in a business decision.
Information is considered relevant if it provides information that has predictive value, that is, helps
provide accurate expectations about the future, and has confirmatory value, that is, confirms or corrects
prior expectations. In addition, materiality is a company-specific aspect of relevance. An item is material
when its size makes it likely to influence the decision of an investor or creditor.
Faithful Representation: It means that information accurately depicts what really happened. To provide
a faithful representation, information must be complete (nothing important has been omitted), neutral (is
not biased toward one position or another), and free from error. So sentence should read: To provide
faithful representation, information must be complete (nothing important has been omitted), neutral (is
not biased toward one position or another), and free from error.
Enhancing Qualities
In addition to the two fundamental qualities, the IASB and FASB also describe a number of enhancing
qualities of useful information. These include comparability, consistency, verifiability, timeliness, and
understandability. In accounting, comparability results when different companies use the same
accounting principles. Another characteristic that enhances comparability is consistency. Consistency
means that a company uses the same accounting principles and methods from year to year. Information
is verifiable if independent measures, using the same methods, obtain similar results. For accounting
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information to have relevance, it must be timely. That is, it must be available to decision-makers before
it loses its capacity to influence decisions. Information has the quality of understandability if it is
presented in a clear and
Historical Cost Principle The historical cost principle (or cost principle) dictates that companies record
assets at their cost. This is true not only at the time the asset is purchased, but also over the time the asset
is held. For example, if Gazprom (RUS) purchases land for $ 300,000, the company initially reports it in
its accounting records at $ 300,000. But what does Gazprom do if, by the end of the next year, the fair
value of the land has increased to $ 400,000? Under the historical cost principle, it continues to report
the land at $ 300,000.
Fair Value Principle The fair value principle states that assets and liabilities should be reported at fair
value (the price received to sell an asset or settle a liability). Fair value information may be more useful
than historical cost for certain types of assets and liabilities. For example, certain investment securities
are reported at fair value because market value information is usually readily available for these types of
assets. In determining which measurement principle to use, companies weight the factual nature of cost
figures versus the relevance of fair value. In general, even though IFRS allows companies to revalue
property, plant, and equipment and other long-lived assets to fair value, most companies choose to use
cost. Only in situations where assets are actively traded, such as investment securities, do companies
apply the fair value principle extensively.
Revenue recognition principle the revenue recognition principle requires that companies recognize
revenue in the accounting period in which the performance obligation is satisfied. In a service company,
revenue is recognized at the time the service is performed. In a merchandising company, the
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performance obligation is generally satisfied when the goods transfer from the seller to the buyer. At this
point, the sales transaction is complete and the sales price established.
Expense recognition principle the expense recognition principle (often referred to as the matching
principle) dictates that efforts (expenses) be matched with results (revenues). Thus, expenses follow
revenues.
Full disclosure principle the full disclosure principle requires that companies disclose all circumstances
and events that would make a difference to financial statement users. If an important item cannot
reasonably be reported directly in one of the four types of financial statements, then it should be
discussed in notes that accompany the statements.
Cost Constraint the cost constraint relates to the fact that providing information is costly. In deciding
whether companies should be required to provide a certain type of information, accounting standard-
setters weigh the cost that companies will incur to provide the information against the benefit that
financial statement users will gain from having the information available.
Assumptions
Monetary Unit Assumption: The monetary unit assumption requires that only those things that can be
expressed in money are included in the accounting records. This means that certain important
information needed by investors, creditors, and managers, such as customer satisfaction, is not reported
in the financial statements.
Economic Entity Assumption: The economic entity assumption states that the activities of the entity
must be kept separate and distinct from the activities of the owner. In order to assess a company’s
performance and financial position accurately, it is important that we not blur company transactions with
personal transactions (especially those of its managers) or transactions of other companies.
Time Period (Periodicity) Assumption: Notice that the income statement, retained earnings statement,
and statement of cash flows all cover periods of one year, and the statement of financial position is
prepared at the end of each year. The time period assumption states that the life of a business can be
divided into artificial time periods and that useful reports covering those periods can be prepared for the
business.
Going Concern Assumption: The going concern assumption states that the business will remain in
operation for the foreseeable future. Of course, many businesses do fail, but in general, it is reasonable
to assume that the business will continue operating.
1.5. The accounting equation and elements of the equation
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The resources owned by a business are its assets. Examples of assets include cash, land, buildings, and
equipment. The rights or claims to the properties are normally divided into two principal types: (1) the
rights of creditors and (2) the rights of owners. The rights of creditors represent debts of the business
and are called liabilities. The rights of the owners are called owner’s equity. The relationship between
the two may be stated in the form of an equation called accounting equation, as follows:
It is usual to place liabilities before owner’s equity in the accounting equation because creditors have
first rights to the assets.
Exercise 1.1: If a company’s assets increase by $20,000 and its liabilities decrease by $5,000, how much
did the owner’s equity increase or decrease?
The accounting equation applies to all economic entities regardless of size, nature of business, or form
of business organization. It applies to a small proprietorship such as a corner grocery store as well as to a
giant corporation such as ADIDAS. The equation provides the underlying framework for recording and
summarizing economic events.
Let’s look in more detail at the categories in the basic accounting equation.
Assets
As noted above, assets are resources a business owns. The business uses its assets in carrying out such
activities as production and sales. The common characteristic possessed by all assets is the capacity to
provide future services or benefits. In a business, that service potential or future economic benefit
eventually results in cash inflows (receipts). For example, consider Campus Pizza, a local restaurant. It
owns a delivery truck that provides economic benefits from delivering pizzas. Other assets of Campus
Pizza are tables, chairs, jukebox, cash register, oven, tableware, and, of course, cash.
To qualify as assets, there are three characteristics to be fulfilled
Have future economic benefits (be capable of producing profits).
Be under managements control (can be freely deployed or disposed of)
Result from past transaction (the transaction or event giving rise to the entity’s right to, or
control of, the benefit has already occurred)
Liabilities
Liabilities: are claims against assets—that is, existing debts and obligations. Businesses of all sizes
usually borrow money and purchase merchandise on credit. Creditors may legally force the liquidation
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Fundamental of accounting one
of a business that does not pay its debts. In that case, the law requires that creditor claims be paid before
ownership claims. To qualify as liabilities, obligations must:
Require transfer of assets having future economic benefit.
Specify to whom the asset must be transferred (the terms, parties, and conditions under which
asset transfers will take place must be specified).
Result from past transactions.
Equity
The ownership claim on total assets is equity. It is equal to total assets minus total liabilities. Here is
why: The assets of a business are claimed by either creditors or shareholders. To find out what belongs
to shareholders, we subtract creditors’ claims (the liabilities) from the assets. The remainder is the
shareholders’ claim on the assets—equity. It is often referred to as residual equity—that is, the equity
―left over‖ after creditors’ claims are satisfied. It generally consists of (1) share capital – ordinary and
(2) retained earnings.
Share Capital – Ordinary: A corporation may obtain funds by selling ordinary shares to investors.
Share capital - ordinary is the term used to describe the amounts paid in by shareholders for the ordinary
shares they purchase.
Dividend: The distribution of cash or other assets to shareholders is called a dividend. Dividends
reduce retained earnings. However, dividends are not an expense. A corporation first determines
its revenues and expenses and then computes net income or net loss. If it has net income, and
decides it has no better use for that income, a corporation may decide to distribute a dividend to
its owners (the shareholders).
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reports. A transaction can be an exchange (such as the purchase or sale of property, payment or
collection of a loan etc.) between two or more parties.
For a given transaction to qualify to be recorded it has: to be related to the business enterprise, to be
measurable in terms of money and to be completed / happened/ action. Transactions may be external or
internal. External transactions involve economic events between the company and some outside
enterprise. Internal transactions are economic events that occur entirely within one company.
Transaction Analysis
All business transactions can be stated in terms of changes in the elements of the accounting equation.
Illustration 1.1
The asset Cash increases €15,000, and equity identified as Share Capital— ordinary increases €15,000.
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TRANSACTION4. SERVICES PROVIDED FOR CASH Softbyte Inc. receives €1,200 cash from
customers for programming services it has provided. This transaction represents Softbyte’s principal
revenue-producing activity. Recall that revenue increases equity
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TRANSACTION6. SERVICES PROVIDED FOR CASH AND CREDIT Softbyte Inc. provides €3,500
of programming services for customers. The company receives cash of €1,500 from customers, and it
bills the balance of €2,000 on account. This transaction results in an equal increase in assets and equity.
TRANSACTION7. PAYMENT OF EXPENSES Softbyte pays the following expenses in cash for
September: store rent €600, salaries and wages of employees €900, and utilities €200. These payments
result in an equal decrease in assets and expenses.
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TRANSACTION8. PAYMENT OF ACCOUNTS PAYABLE Softbyte pays its €250 Daily News bill in
cash. The company previously (in Transaction 5) recorded the bill as an increase in Accounts Payable
and a decrease in equity.
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Fundamental of accounting one
1.15,000 15,000
2.-7,000 + €7,000 --------
= 8000 + 7000 15000
3. ------- 1,600 -------- 1600 -----------
=8000 €1,600 7000 1600 15000
4.+1200 ------ ------- -------------- --------- +1200 ----- ----
=9200 1600 7000 1600 15000 1200
5.------- ---- ----- 250 -------- -------- -250 ------
=9200 1600 7000 1850 15000 1200 250
6.+1500 +2000 ----- ------- ------- ----- 3500 --- ------
=10700 2000 1600 7000 1850 15000 4700 250
7 -1700 ------ ------ ------ ------- ---------- -------- -600 -----
-900
-200
=9000 2000 1600 7000 1850 15000 4700 1950
8.-250 ------- ------- -------- -250 -------- --------- -------
=8750 2000 1600 7000 1600 1500 4700 1950
9.+600 -600 ----- ------- ------ ------- ------- --------
=9350 1400 1600 7000 1600 1500 4700 1950
TRANSACTION10. DIVIDENDS The Corporation pays a dividend of €1,300 in cash to Ray and
Barbara Neal, the shareholders of Softbyte Inc. This transaction results in an equal decrease in assets and
equity.
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Summary of Transactions
Illustration 1-1 summarizes the September transactions of Softbyte Inc. to show their cumulative effect
on the basic accounting equation. It also indicates the transaction number and the specific effects of each
transaction. Finally, Illustration 1-1 demonstrates a number of significant facts:
1. Each transaction must be analyzed in terms of its effect on: (a) The three components of the basic
accounting equation. (b) Specific types (kinds) of items within each component.
3. The Share Capital—Ordinary and Retained Earnings columns indicate the causes of each change in
the shareholders’ claim on assets.
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Cash Flows from Financing Activities: This section reports the cash transactions related to cash
investments by the owner, borrowings, and cash withdrawals by the owner.
All financial statements should be identified by the name of the business, the title of the statement, and
the date or period of time.
SOFTBYTE SA
Income Statement
For the Month Ended September 30, 2017
Service revenue $4700.00
Salary and wage expenses: 900.00
Rent expense $600.00
advertising expense 250.00
utility expense 200.00
Total operating expenses $1,950.00
Net income $2,750.00
Net Solutions
Statement of Owner's Equity
For the Month Ended November 30, 2010
Aymen, capital, November 1, 2010 $0
Investment on November 1, 2010 $25,000.00
Net income for November $3,050.00
$28,050.00
Less withdrawals $2,000.00
Increase in owner's equity 26,050.00
Aymen, capital, November 30, 2010 $ 26,050.00
Net Solutions
Statement of Financial Position
November 30, 2010
Assets Owner's Equity
Land $20,000.00 Aymen, capital 26,050.00
Supplies $550.00 Liabilities
Cash $5,900.00 Accounts payable $400.00
Total liabilities and owner's equity 26,450.00
Total assets $26,450.00
Net Solutions
Statement of Cash Flows
For the Month Ended November 30, 2010
Cash flows from operating activities:
Cash received from customers $7,500.00
Deduct cash payments for expenses and
payments to creditors 4,600.00
Net cash flow from operating activities $2,900.00
Cash flows from investing activities:
Cash payments for acquisition of land (20,000.00)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Cash received as owner's investment $25,000.00
Deduct cash withdrawal by owner 2,000.00
Net cash flow from financing activities 23,000.00
Net cash flow and November 30, 2010 cash
balance $5,900.00
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Instructions
i. Determine the amount of owner’s equity (Cecil Jameson’s capital) as of July 1, 2005.
ii. State the assets, liabilities, and owner’s equity as of July 1 in equation form similar to that shown
in this chapter. In tabular form below the equation, indicate the increases and decreases resulting
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from each transaction and the new balances after each transaction. Explain the nature of each
increase and decrease in owner’s equity by an appropriate notation at the right of the amount.
iii. Prepare an income statement for July, a statement of owner’s equity for July, and statement of
financial position as of July 31, 2005.
2. Eureka Dry Cleaners is owned and operated by Vince Fry. A building and equipment are currently
being rented, pending expansion to new facilities. The actual work of dry cleaning is done by
another company at wholesale rates. The assets and the liabilities of the business on June 1, 2006,
are as follows: Cash, $8,600; Accounts Receivable, $9,500; Supplies, $1,875; Land, $15,000;
Accounts Payable, $4,100. Business transactions during June are summarized as follows:
a. Paid rent for the month, $4,000.
b. Charged customers for dry cleaning sales on account, $8,150.
c. Paid creditors on account, $2,680.
d. Purchased supplies on account, $1,500.
e. Received cash from cash customers for dry cleaning sales, $17,600.
f. Received cash from customers on account, $8,450.
g. Received monthly invoice for dry cleaning expense for June (to be paid on July 10), $7,400.
h. Paid the following: wages expense, $2,800; truck expense, $825; utilities expense, $710;
miscellaneous expense, $390.
i. Determined that the cost of supplies on hand was $1,600; therefore, the cost of supplies used
during the month was $1,775.
j. Withdrew $3,500 for personal use.
Instructions
i. Determine the amount of Vince Fry’s capital as of June 1.
ii. State the assets, liabilities, and owner’s equity as of June 1 in equation form similar to that shown in
this chapter. In tabular form below the equation, indicate increases and decreases resulting from each
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transaction and the new balances after each transaction. Explain the nature of each increase and
decrease in owner’s equity by an appropriate notation at the right of the amount.
iii. Prepare an income statement for June, a statement of owner’s equity for June, and Statement of
Financial Positions as of June 30.
Chapter 2:
Accounting cycle for service-giving business
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An account, in its simplest form, has three parts. First, each account has a title, which is the name of the
item recorded in the account. Second, each account has a space for recording increases in the amount of
the item. Third, each account has a space for recording decreases in the amount of the item. The account
form presented below is called a T account because it resembles the letter T. The left side of the account
is called the debit side, and the right side is called the credit side.
Title
Left side Right side
Debit Credit
Amounts entered on the left side of an account, regardless of the account title, are called debits to the
account. When debits are entered in an account, the account is said to be debited (or charged). Amounts
entered on the right side of an account are called credits, and the account is said to be credited. Debits
and credits are sometimes abbreviated as Dr. and Cr.
Assets: Assets could be tangible or intangible. Tangible assets are assets having physical existence, like
cash, land, computer, stationery materials. Intangible asset is a contractual agreement and do not have
physical existence. Example: Goodwill, Copyright, patent right. On the balance sheet, assets are
classified into two current assets and noncurrent assets.
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Current Assets: are those assets, which can be used, sold, or converted into cash within one accounting
year or operating cycle. Example: cash, supplies, prepayments, receivables etc.
Non-current Asset: All assets other than current assets are called non-current assets. Example: land,
patent right, office equipment, vehicles.
Liabilities: Liabilities are classified into two as current liabilities and non–current liabilities
Current liabilities: The liabilities that are payable within the next (one) accounting year or operating
cycle are known as current liability. Example: Accounts Payable, Rent Payable, Salary Payable.
Non-Current Liabilities: Debts that are not required to be paid within the next accounting period or
operating cycle. Example long term notes payable.
Capital: The excess of the assets of a business over its liabilities is referred to as capital. It is the equity
of the owner or owners in the business.
Revenue: Are increases in owner’s equity resulting from the main operations of the business. E.g. Sales,
interest income, tuition fee, and sales commission
Expenses: are decreases in owner’s equity in the process of earning revenue. For example, a hotel has to
pay salary (expense) to its workers for the services rendered to clients in order to get the income from
customers (revenue). E.g. Salary, insurance, depreciation, supplies, utilities, rent etc.
In the chart of accounts, the asset accounts are listed according to their liquidity. Liquidity is the ease
with which an asset can be converted in to cash. Cash is the most liquid asset so it is listed first.
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The Journal commonly used to record all types of transactions is the General Journal. This Journal
includes the following parts, entered step by step.
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Illustration 2.1: To illustrate how transactions are analyzed and summarized in accounts, we will use
the Net Solutions transactions from Chapter 1, with dates added.
November 1 Aymen deposits $25,000 in a bank account in the name of Net Solutions.
November 5 Net Solutions bought land $20,000 for cash.
November 10 Net Solutions buying supplies for $1,350 and agreeing to pay the supplier in the near future.
November 18 Net Solutions provided services to customers, earning fees of $7,500 and receiving the
amount in cash
November 30 The expenses paid during the month were as follows: wages, $2,125; rent, $800; utilities,
$450; and miscellaneous, $275.
November 30 Net Solutions pays $950 to creditors during the month
November 30 At the end of the month, the cost of the supplies on hand (not yet used) is $550.
November 30 At the end of the month, Aymen withdraws $2,000 in cash from the business for personal use.
Journal Page 1
Date Description Post. Debit Credit
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Ref.
2010
Nov. 1 Cash 11 25,000 00
Entry A
Aymen, Capital 31 25,000 00
Invested cash in Net Solutions
5 Land 17 20,000 00
Cash 11 20,000 00
Entry B Purchased land for building site.
10 Supplies 14 1,350 00
Account Payable 12 13,500 00
Entry C Purchased supplies on account
18 Cash 11 7,500 00
Fees Earned 41 7,500 00
Entry D Received fees from customers
30 Wages Expense 51 2,125 00
Rent Expense 52 800 00
Utilities Expense 54 450 00
Entry E
Miscellaneous Expense 59 275 00
Cash 11 3,650 00
Paid expenses
30 Accounts Payable 21 950 00
Cash 11 950 00
Entry F Paid creditors on account
30 Supplies Expense 55 800 00
Supplies 14 800 00
Entry G Supplies used during the month
30 Aymen, Drawing 32 2,000 00
Cash 11 2,000 00
Aymen withdrew cash for personal use
Regardless of the number of accounts, the sum of the debits is always equal to the sum of the credits in a
journal entry. This equality of debits and credits for each transaction is built into the accounting
equation: Assets – Liabilities = Owner’s Equity. It is also because of this double equality that the system
is known as double-entry accounting.
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Periodically, the journal entries are transferred to the accounts in the ledger. The ledger is a history of
transactions by account. The process of transferring the debits and credits from the journal entries to the
accounts is called posting. In practice, businesses use a variety of formats for recording journal entries.
A business may use one all-purpose journal, sometimes called a two-column journal, or it may use
several journals. In the latter case, each journal is used to record different types of transactions, such as
cash receipts or cash payments. The journals may be part of either a manual accounting system or a
computerized accounting system.
Illustration 2.2: To illustrate recording a transaction in a general journal and posting in a manual
accounting system, we will use the December transactions of Net Solutions. The first transaction in
December occurred on December 1.
Dec. 1. Net Solutions paid a premium of $2,400 for a Analysis: Advance payments of expenses such as insurance are
comprehensive insurance policy covering liability, prepaid expenses, which are assets. For Net Solutions, the asset
theft, and fire. The policy covers a two-year period. acquired for the cash payment is insurance protection for 24 months.
The asset Prepaid Insurance increases and is debited for $2,400. The
asset Cash decreases and is credited for $2,400.
Dec. 1. Net Solutions paid rent for December, $800. Analysis: The advance payment of rent is an asset, much like the
The company from which Net Solutions is renting its advance payment of the insurance premium in the preceding
store space now requires the payment of rent on the transaction. However, unlike the insurance premium, this prepaid
st
1 of each month, rather than at the end of the rent will expire in one month. When an asset that is purchased will
month. be used up in a short period of time, such as a month, it is normal to
debit an expense account initially. This avoids having to transfer the
balance from an asset account (Prepaid Rent) to an expense account
(Rent Expense) at the end of the month. Thus, when the rent for
December is prepaid at the beginning of the month, Rent Expense is
debited for $800 and Cash is credited for $800.
Dec. 1. Net Solutions received an offer from a local Analysis: By agreeing to rent the land and accepting the $360, Net
retailer to rent the land purchased on November 5. Solutions has incurred an obligation (liability) to the retailer. This
The retailer plans to use the land as a parking lot for obligation is to make the land available for use for three months and
its employees and customers. Net Solutions agreed not to interfere with its use. The liability created by receiving the
to rent the land to the retailer for three months, with cash in advance of providing the service is called unearned
the rent payable in advance. Net Solutions received revenue. Thus, the $360 received is an increase in an asset and is
$360 for three months’ rent beginning December 1. debited to Cash. The liability account Unearned Rent increases and
is credited for $360. As time passes, the unearned rent liability will
decrease and will become revenue.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Dec. 4. Net Solutions purchased office equipment on Analysis: The asset account Office Equipment increases and is
account from Executive Supply Co. for $1,800. therefore debited for $1,800. The liability account Accounts Payable
increases and is credited for $1,800.
Dec. 6. Net Solutions paid $180 for a newspaper Analysis: An expense increases and is debited for $180. The asset
advertisement. Cash decreases and is credited for $180. Expense items that are
expected to be minor in amount are normally included as part of the
miscellaneous expense. Thus, Miscellaneous Expense is debited for
$180.
Dec. 11. Net Solutions paid creditors $400. Analysis: This payment decreases the liability account Accounts
Payable, which is debited for $400. Cash also decreases and is
credited for $400.
Dec. 13. Net Solutions paid a receptionist and a part- Analysis: This transaction is similar to the December 6 transaction,
time assistant $950 for two weeks’ wages. where an expense account is increased and Cash is decreased. Thus,
Wages Expense is debited for $950, and Cash is credited for $950.
Dec. 16. Net Solutions received $3,100 from fees Analysis: Cash increases and is debited for $3,100. The revenue
earned for the first half of December. account Fees Earned increases and is credited for $3,100.
Dec. 16. Fees earned on account totaled $1,750 for Analysis: When a business agrees payment for services provided or
the first half of December. goods sold can be accepted at a later date, the firm has an account
receivable, which is a claim against the customer. The account
receivable is an asset, and the revenue is earned even though no cash
has been received. Thus, Accounts Receivable increases and is
debited for $1,750. The revenue account Fees Earned increases and
is credited for $1,750.
Dec. 20. Net Solutions paid $900 to Executive Analysis: This is similar to the transaction of December 11.
Supply Co. on the $1,800 debt owed from the
December 4 transaction.
Dec. 21. Net Solutions received $650 from Analysis: When customers pay amounts owed for services they have
customers in payment of their accounts. previously received, one asset increases and another asset decreases.
Thus, Cash is debited for $650, and Accounts Receivable is credited
for $650.
Dec. 23. Net Solutions paid $1,450 for supplies. Analysis: The asset account Supplies increases and is debited for
$1,450. The asset account Cash decreases and is credited for $1,450.
Dec. 27. Net Solutions paid the receptionist and the Analysis: This is similar to the transaction of December 13.
part-time assistant $1,200 for two weeks’ wages.
Dec. 31. Net Solutions paid its $310 telephone bill Analysis: Such transactions are similar to the transaction of
for the month. December 6. The expense account Utilities Expense is debited for
$310, and Cash is credited for $310.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Dec. 31. Net Solutions paid its $225 electric bill for Analysis: This is similar to the preceding transaction.
the month.
Dec. 31. Net Solutions received $2,870 from fees Analysis: This is similar to the transaction of December 16.
earned for the second half of December.
Dec. 31. Fees earned on account totaled $1,120 for Analysis: This is similar to the transaction of December 16.
the second half of December.
Dec. 31. Aymen withdrew $2,000 for personal use. Analysis: This transaction resulted in an increase in the amount of
withdrawals and is recorded by a $2,000 debit to Aymen, Drawing.
The decrease in business cash is recorded by a $2,000 credit to
Cash.
Journal Page 2
Post.
Date Description Ref. Debit Credit
2010
Dec. 1 Prepaid Insurance 15 2,400 00
Cash 11 2,400 00
Paid premium on two year policy
1 Rent Expense 52 800 00
Cash 11 800 00
Paid rent for December
1 Cash 11 360 00
Unearned Rent 23 360 00
Received advance payment for three months’ rent on
land
4 Office Equipment 18 1,800 00
Account Payable 21 1,800 00
Purchased office equipment on account
6 Miscellaneous Expense 59 180 00
Cash 11 180 00
Paid for newspaper
11 Accounts Payable 21 400 00
Cash 11 400 00
Paid creditors for account
13 Wages Expense 51 950 00
Cash 11 950 00
Paid two weeks’ wages
16 Cash 11 3,100 00
Fees earned 41 3,100 00
Received fees from customers
Journal Page 3
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Fundamental of accounting one
Post.
Date Description Ref. Debit Credit
2010
Dec. 16 Account Receivable 12 1,750 00
Fees Earned 41 1,750 00
Recorded fees earned on account
20 Account Payable 21 900 00
Cash 11 900 00
Paid part of amount owed to execute supply Co.
21 Cash 11 650 00
Account Receivable 12 650 00
Received cash from customers on account
23 Supplies 14 1,450 00
Cash 11 1,450 00
Purchased supplies
27 Wages Expense 51 1,200 00
Cash 11 1,200 00
Paid two weeks’ wages
31 Utilities Expense 54 310 00
Cash 11 310 00
Paid telephone bill
31 Utilities Expense 54 225 00
Cash 11 225 00
Paid electric bill
31 Cash 11 2,870 00
Fees Earned 41 2,870 00
Received fees from customers
31 Accounts Receivable 12 1,120 00
Fees Earned 41 1,120 00
Recorded fees earned on account
31 Aymen, Drawing 32 2,000 00
Cash 11 2,000 00
Aymen withdrew cash for personal use.
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Fundamental of accounting one
LEDGER
Account Cash Account No. 11
Post. Balance
Date Item Ref. Debit Credit Debit Credit
2010
Nov. 1 1 25000 00 25000 00
5 1 20000 00 5000 00
18 1 7500 00 12500 00
30 1 3650 00 8850 00
30 1 950 00 7900 00
30 2 2000 00 5900 00
Dec. 1 2 2400 00 3500 00
1 2 800 00 2700 00
1 2 360 00 3060 00
6 2 180 00 2880 00
11 2 400 00 2480 00
13 2 950 00 1530 00
16 2 3100 00 4630 00
20 3 900 3730 00
21 3 650 00 4380 00
23 3 1450 00 2930 00
27 3 1200 00 1730 00
31 3 310 00 1420 00
31 3 225 00 1195 00
31 3 2870 00 4065 00
31 3 2000 00 2065 00
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Fundamental of accounting one
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Fundamental of accounting one
The first step in preparing the trial balance is to determine the balance of each account in the ledger.
When the standard account form is used, the balance of each account appears in the balance column on
the same line as the last posting to the account.
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Fundamental of accounting one
The trial balance does not provide complete proof of the accuracy of the ledger. It indicates only that the
debits and the credits are equal. This proof is of value, however, because errors often affect the equality
of debits and credits. If the two totals of a trial balance are not equal, an error has occurred.
Net Solutions
Trial Balance
December 31, 2010
Cash 2065 00
Accounts Receivable 2220 00
Supplies 2000 00
Prepaid Insurance 2400 00
Land 20000 00
Office Equipment 1800 00
Accounts Payable 900 00
Unearned Rent 360 00
Aymen, Capital 25000 00
Aymen, Drawing 4000 00
Fees Earned 16340 00
Wages Expense 4275 00
Rent Expense 1600 00
Utilities Expense 985 00
Supplies Expense 800 00
Miscellaneous Expense 455 00
42600 00 42600 00
2.7. The usefulness and limitations of a trial balance
Trial Balance acts as the first step in the preparation of financial statements. It is a working paper that
accountants use as a basis while preparing financial statements.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Trial Balance only confirms that the total of all debit balances match the total of all credit balances. Trial
balance totals may agree in spite of errors. An example would be an incorrect debit entry being offset by
an equal credit entry. Likewise, a trial balance gives no proof that certain transactions have not been
recorded at all because in such case, both debit and credit sides of a transaction would be omitted
causing the trial balance totals to still agree.
Discovery of Errors
As mentioned previously, preparing the trial balance is one of the primary ways to discover errors in the
ledger. However, it indicates only that the debits and credits are equal. If the two totals of the trial
balance are not equal, it is probably due to one or more of the errors described below.
Trial balance preparation error
Column incorrectly added
Amount incorrectly entered on trial balance
Balance entered in wrong column or omitted
Account balance errors
Balance incorrectly computed
Balance entered in wrong column of account
Posting errors
Wrong amount posted to an account
Debit posted as credit, or vice versa.
Debit or credit posting omitted
Among the types of errors that will not cause the trial balance totals to be unequal are the following:
Failure to record a transaction or to post a transaction.
Recording the same erroneous amount for both the debit and the credit parts of a transaction.
Recording the same transaction more than once.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Posting a part of a transaction correctly as a debit or credit but to the wrong account.
It is obvious that care should be used in recording transactions in the journal and in posting to the
accounts. The need for accuracy in determining account balances and reporting them on the trial balance
is also evident. Errors in the accounts may be discovered in various ways: (1) through audit procedures,
(2) by looking at the trial balance or (3) by chance. If the two trial balance totals are not equal, the
amount of the difference between the totals should be determined before searching for the error.
The amount of the difference between the two totals of a trial balance sometimes gives a clue as to the
nature of the error or where it occurred. For example, a difference of 10, 100, or 1,000 between two
totals is often the result of an error in addition. A difference between totals can also be due to omitting a
debit or a credit posting. If the difference can be evenly divided by 2, the error may be due to the posting
of a debit as a credit, or vice versa. For example, if the debit total is $20,640 and the credit total is
$20,236, the difference of $404 may indicate that a credit posting of $404 was omitted or that a credit of
$202 was incorrectly posted as a debit.
Two other common types of errors are known as transpositions and slides. A transposition occurs when
the order of the digits is changed mistakenly, such as writing $542 as $452 or $524. In a slide, the entire
number is mistakenly moved one or more spaces to the right or the left, such as writing $542.00 as
$54.20 or $5,420.00. If an error is not revealed by the trial balance, the steps in the accounting process
must be retraced, beginning with the last step and working back to the entries in the journal. Usually,
errors causing the trial balance totals to be unequal will be discovered before all of the steps are retraced.
Correction of Errors
The procedures used to correct an error in journalizing or posting vary according to the nature of the
error and when the error is discovered. These procedures are summarized below.
Error Correction Procedure
1. Journal entry is incorrect but not posted. Draw a line through the error and insert correct title or amount.
2. Journal entry is correct but posted Draw a line through the error and post correctly.
incorrectly.
3. Journal entry is incorrect and posted. Journalize and post a correcting entry.
To illustrate, assume that on May 5 a $12,500 purchase of office equipment on account was incorrectly
journalized and posted as a debit to Supplies and a credit to Accounts Payable for $12,500. This posting
of the incorrect entry is shown in the following T accounts.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Before making a correcting entry, it is best to determine the debit(s) and credit(s) that should have been
recorded. These are shown in the following T accounts.
It fails to record revenue for a company that has provided services but for which it has not received the
cash. As a result, it does not match expenses with revenues. Cash basis accounting is not in
accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).
The accrual basis of accounting – companies record transactions that change a company’s financial
statements in the periods in which the events occur. Under this method revenues are reported in the
period in which they are earned, and expenses are reported in the period in which they are incurred. For
example, revenue will be recognized as services are provided to customers or goods sold and not when
cash is collected. Most organizations use this method of accounting and we will apply this method in
this course.
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Fundamental of accounting one
The accrual basis and its related matching concept require an analysis and updating of some accounts
when financial statements are prepared. In the following paragraphs, we will describe and illustrate this
process, called the adjusting process.
At the end of an accounting period, many of the balances of accounts in the ledger can be reported,
without change, in the financial statements. For example, the balance of the cash account is normally the
amount reported on the balance sheet. Some accounts in the ledger, however, require updating. For
example, the balances listed for prepaid expenses are normally overstated because the use of these assets
is not recorded on a day-to-day basis. The balance of the supplies account usually represents the cost of
supplies at the beginning of the period plus the cost of supplies acquired during the period. To record the
daily use of supplies would require many entries with small amounts. In addition, the total amount of
supplies is small relative to other assets, and managers usually do not require day-to-day information
about supplies.
The journal entries that bring the accounts up to date at the end of the accounting period are called
adjusting entries. All adjusting entries affect at least one income statement account and one balance
sheet account. Thus, an adjusting entry will always involve a revenue or an expense account and an
asset or a liability account.
There are four basic items require adjusting entries. The first two items are deferrals. Deferrals are
created by recording a transaction in a way that delays or defers the recognition of an expense or
revenue, as described below.
Deferred expenses, or prepaid expenses, are items that have been initially recorded as assets but are
expected to become expenses over time or through the normal operations of the business. Supplies
and prepaid insurance are two examples of prepaid expenses that may require adjustment at the end
of an accounting period.
Deferred revenues, or unearned revenues, are items that have been initially recorded as liabilities
but are expected to become revenues over time or through the normal operations of the business. An
example of deferred revenue is unearned rent. Other examples include tuition received in advance by
a school, an annual retainer fee received by an attorney, premiums received in advance by an
insurance company, and magazine subscriptions received in advance by a publisher.
The second two items that require adjusting entries are accruals. Accruals are created by an unrecorded
expense that has been incurred or unrecorded revenue that has been earned, as described below.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Accrued expenses, or accrued liabilities, are expenses that have been incurred but have not been
recorded in the accounts. An example of an accrued expense is accrued wages owed to employees at
the end of a period. Other examples include accrued interest on notes payable and accrued taxes.
Accrued revenues, or accrued assets, are revenues that have been earned but have not been
recorded in the accounts. An example of accrued revenue is fees for services that an attorney has
provided but hasn’t billed to the client at the end of the period. Other examples include unbilled
commissions by a travel agent, accrued interest on notes receivable, and accrued rent on property
rented to others.
Illustration:
Deferred Expense (Prepaid Expense)
The balance in Net Solutions’ supplies account on December 31 is $2,000. Some of these supplies
(computer diskettes, paper, envelopes, etc.) were used during December, and some are still on hand (not
used). On December 31 the amount of supplies on hand is $760. The adjusting journal entry is as
follows:
2010
a Dec. 31 Supplies Expense 55 1,240 00
Supplies 14 1,240 00
The debit balance of $2,400 in Net Solutions’ prepaid insurance account represents a December 1
prepayment of insurance for 24 months. At the end of December, the insurance expense account should
be increased (debited), and the prepaid insurance account should be decreased (credited) by $100, the
insurance for one month. The adjusting journal entry for Prepaid Insurance and Insurance Expense are as
follows:
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Fundamental of accounting one
At the end of December, accrued wages for Net Solutions were $250 for two days. Assume the last pay
day was Friday, December 27 and December 30 & 31 wages will be paid on next year. This amount is
an additional expense of December and is debited to the wages expense account. It is also a liability as
of December 31 and is credited to Wages Payable.
d 31 Wages Expense 51 250 00
Wages Payable 22 250 00
Assume Net Solutions signed an agreement with Dankner Co. on December 15. The agreement provides
that Net Solutions will be on call to answer computer questions and render assistance to Dankner Co.’s
employees. The services provided will be billed to Dankner Co. on the fifteenth of each month at a rate
of $20 per hour. As of December 31, Net Solutions had provided 25 hours of assistance to Dankner Co.
Although the revenue of $500 (25 hours x $20) will be billed and collected in January, Net Solutions
earned the revenue in December. The adjusting journal entry to record the claim against the customer
(an account receivable) and the fees earned in December are shown below.
e 31 Accounts Receivable 12 500 00
Fees Earned 41 500 00
Fixed Assets
Physical resources that are owned and used by a business and are permanent or have a long life are
called fixed assets, or plant assets. In a sense, fixed assets are a type of long-term deferred expense.
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Fundamental of accounting one
However, because of their nature and long life, they are discussed separately from other deferred
expenses, such as supplies and prepaid insurance.
Net Solutions’ fixed assets include office equipment that is used much like supplies are used to generate
revenue. Unlike supplies, however, there is no visible reduction in the quantity of the equipment.
Instead, as time passes, the equipment loses its ability to provide useful services. This decrease in
usefulness is called depreciation.
All fixed assets, except land, lose their usefulness. Decreases in the usefulness of assets that are used in
generating revenue are recorded as expenses. However, such decreases for fixed assets are difficult to
measure. For this reason, a portion of the cost of a fixed asset is recorded as an expense each year of its
useful life. This periodic expense is called depreciation expense.
The adjusting entry to record depreciation is similar to the adjusting entry for supplies used. The account
debited is a depreciation expense account. However, the asset account Office Equipment is not credited
because both the original cost of a fixed asset and the amount of depreciation recorded since its purchase
are normally reported on the balance sheet. The account credited is an accumulated depreciation
account. Accumulated depreciation accounts are called contra accounts or contra asset accounts
because they are deducted from the related asset accounts on the balance sheet.
The adjusting entry to record depreciation for December for Net Solutions is illustrated in the following
journal entry. The estimated amount of depreciation for the month is assumed to be $50.
f 31 Depreciation Expense 53 50 00
Accumulated Depreciation – Office
Equipment 19 50 00
The $50 increase in the accumulated depreciation account is subtracted from the $1,800 cost recorded in
the related fixed asset account. The difference between the two balances is the $1,750 cost that has not
yet been depreciated. This amount ($1,750) is called the book value of the asset (or net book value).
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Fundamental of accounting one
The work sheet is a working paper that accountants can use to summarize adjusting entries and the
account balances for the financial statements. In small companies with few accounts and adjustments, a
work sheet may not be necessary.
Adjustments Columns
The adjustments that we explained and illustrated for Net Solutions are entered in the Adjustments
columns. If the titles of some of the accounts to be adjusted do not appear in the trial balance, they
should be inserted in the Account Title column, below the trial balance totals, as needed.
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Fundamental of accounting one
The adjustment data are added to or subtracted from the amounts in the unadjusted Trial Balance
columns. The adjusted amounts are then extended to (placed in) the Adjusted Trial Balance columns.
Total the columns of the Adjusted Trial Balance to verify the equality of debits and credits.
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Fundamental of accounting one
You should note that Income Summary is used only at the end of the period. At the beginning of the
closing process, Income Summary has no balance. During the closing process, Income Summary will be
debited and credited for various amounts. At the end of the closing process, Income Summary will again
have no balance. Because Income Summary has the effect of clearing the revenue and expense accounts
of their balances, it is sometimes called a clearing account. Other titles used for this account include
Revenue and Expense Summary, Profit and Loss Summary, and Income and Expense Summary.
It is possible to close the temporary revenue and expense accounts without using a clearing account such
as Income Summary. In this case, the balances of the revenue and expense accounts are closed directly
to the owner’s capital account. This process is automatic in a computerized accounting system. In a
manual system, the use of an income summary account aids in detecting and correcting errors.
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Fundamental of accounting one
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Fundamental of accounting one
some special provision, Wages Payable must be debited for the amount owed for the earlier period, and
Wages Expense must be debited for the portion of the payroll that represents expense for the later
period. However, an optional entry—the reversing entry—may be used to simplify the analysis and
recording of this first payroll entry in a period. As the term implies, reversing entry is the exact opposite
of the adjusting entry to which it relates. The amounts and accounts are the same as the adjusting entry;
the debits and credits are reversed.
Illustration: Net Solutions’ accrued wages, which were presented previously. These data are summarized
below
Wages are paid on the second and fourth Fridays for the two-week periods ending on those Fridays.
The wages accrued for Monday and Tuesday, December 30 and 31, 2010 are $250.
Wages paid on Friday, January 10, 2011 total $1,275.
The adjusting entry in December 31, 2010 was
Dec. 31 Wages Expense 51 250 00
Wages Payable 22 250 00
After the adjusting entry has been posted, Wages Expense will have a debit balance of $4,525 ($4,275 +
$250), and Wages Payable will have a credit balance of $250. After the closing process is completed,
Wages Expense will have a zero balance and will be ready for entries in the next period. Wages Payable,
on the other hand, has a balance of $250. Without a reversing entry, it is necessary to record the $1,275
payroll on January 10 as follows:
2011
Jan. 10 Wages Payable 22 250 00
Wages Expense 51 1025 00
Cash 11 1275 00
The employee who records the January 10th entry must refer to the prior period’s adjusting entry to
determine the amount of the debits to Wages Payable and Wages Expense. Because the January 10th
payroll is not recorded in the usual manner, there is a greater chance that an error may occur. This
chance of error is reduced by recording a reversing entry as of the first day of the fiscal period. For
example, the reversing entry for the accrued wages expense is as follows:
Jan. 1 Wages Payable 22 250 00
Wages Expense 51 250 00
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Fundamental of accounting one
The reversing entry transfers the $250 liability from Wages Payable to the credit side of Wages
Expense. The nature of the $250 is unchanged—it is still a liability. When the payroll is paid on January
10, the following entry is recorded:
Jan. 10 Wages Expense 51 1275 00
Cash 11 1275 00
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Fundamental of accounting one
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Fundamental of accounting one
Chapter 3:
Accounting cycle for merchandising business
3.1. Characteristics of merchandising business
A merchandising business earns income by buying and selling goods, which are called merchandise
inventory. Whether a merchandiser is a wholesaler or a retailer, it uses the same basic accounting
methods as a service company. However, the buying and selling of goods adds to the complexity of the
business and of the accounting process. To understand the issues involved in accounting for a
merchandising business, one must be familiar with the operating cycle.
Operating cycles differ, depending upon the nature of the business and its operations. The operating
cycle begins with spending cash and it ends with receiving cash from customers. Most companies buy
merchandise on credit and sell it on credit, thereby engaging in the following four transactions:
Purchase of merchandise inventory for cash or on credit
Payment for purchases made on credit
Sales of merchandise inventory for cash or on credit
Collection of cash from credit sales
In this chapter, we will illustrate Net Solutions after it becomes a retailer of computer hardware and
software. During 2010, we assume that Aymen implemented the second phase of Net Solutions’
business plan. Accordingly, Aymen notified clients that beginning July 1, 2011, Net Solutions would be
terminating its consulting services. Instead, it would become a personalized retailer.
Perpetual system: In a perpetual inventory system, companies keep detailed records of the cost of
each inventory purchase and sale. These records continuously perpetually show the inventory that
should be on hand for every item. Under a perpetual inventory system, a company determines the cost of
goods sold each time a sale occurs.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Periodic system: In a periodic inventory system, companies do not keep detailed inventory records of
the goods on hand throughout the period. Instead, they determine the cost of goods sold only at the end
of the accounting period that is, periodically. At that point, the company takes a physical inventory
count to determine the cost of goods on hand. To determine the cost of goods sold under a periodic
inventory system, the following steps are necessary:
Determine the cost of goods on hand at the beginning of the accounting period.
Add to it the cost of goods purchased.
Subtract the cost of goods on hand at the end of the accounting period.
Purchases Discounts
Purchases discounts taken by the buyer for early payment of an invoice reduce the cost of the
merchandise purchased. Most businesses design their accounting systems so that all available discounts
are taken. Even if the buyer has to borrow to make the payment within a discount period, it is normally
to the buyer’s advantage to do so.
To illustrate, assume that Alpha Technologies issues an invoice for $3,000 to Net Solutions, dated
March 12, with terms 2/10, n/30. The last day of the discount period in which the $60 discount can be
taken is March 22. Assume that in order to pay the invoice on March 22, Net Solutions borrows the
money for the remaining 20 days of the credit period. If we assume an annual interest rate of 6% and a
360-day year, the interest on the loan of $2,940 ($3,000 - $60) is $9.80 ($2,940 X 6% X 20/360). The
net savings to Net Solutions is $50.20, computed as follows:
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Fundamental of accounting one
If Net Solutions does not take the discount because it does not pay the invoice until April 11, it would
record the payment as follows:
Apr. 11 Accounts Payable – Alpha Technologies 3000 00
Cash 3000 00
The buyer may use a copy of the debit memorandum as the basis for recording the return or allowance
or wait for approval from the seller (creditor). In either case, the buyer must debit Accounts Payable and
credit Merchandise Inventory. To illustrate, Net Solutions records the return of the merchandise
indicated in the debit memo as follows:
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Fundamental of accounting one
When a buyer returns merchandise or has been granted an allowance prior to paying the invoice, the
amount of the debit memorandum is deducted from the invoice amount. The amount is deducted before
the purchase discount is computed. For example, assume that on May 2, Net Solutions purchases $5,000
of merchandise from Delta Data Link, subject to terms 2/10, n/30. On May 4, Net Solutions returns
$3,000 of the merchandise, and on May 12, Net Solutions pays the original invoice less the return. Net
Solutions would record these transactions as follows:
May 2 Merchandise Inventory 5000 00
Accounts Payable – Delta Data Link 5000 00
Purchased merchandise
4 Accounts Payable – Delta Data Link 3000 00
Merchandise Inventory 3000 00
Returned portion of merchandise purchased
12 Accounts Payable – Delta Data Link 2000 00
Cash 1960 00
Purchase discount 40 00
Paid invoice (($5000 - $3000) X 2%
= $40; $2000 - $40 = $1960)
3.4. Accounting for sales of merchandises
When a merchandising company transfers goods to the buyer, in exchange for cash or a promise top at a
later date, revenue is produced to the company. This revenue is recorded in a Sales account. However,
the sales revenue, which is reported on the Income Statement, is Net Sales. That is,
Net Sales = Gross Sales – Sales Discounts- Sales Returns and Allowances
Cash Sales
A business may sell merchandise for cash. Cash sales are normally rung up (entered) on cash register
and recorded in the accounts. To illustrate, assume that on January 3, 2012 Net Solutions sells
merchandise for $1,800. These cash sales can be recorded as follows:
2012
Jan. 3 Cash 1800 00
Sales 1800 00
To record cash sales
Under the perpetual inventory system, the cost of merchandise sold and the reduction in merchandise
inventory should also be recorded. In this way, the merchandise inventory account will indicate the
amount of merchandise on hand (not sold). To illustrate, assume that the cost of merchandise sold on
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Fundamental of accounting one
January 3 was $1,200. The entry to record the cost of merchandise sold and the reduction in the
merchandise inventory is as follows:
Jan. 3 Cost of Merchandise Sold 1200 00
Merchandise Inventory 1200 00
To record the cost of merchandise sold
Sales on Account
A business may sell merchandise on account. The seller records such sales as a debit to Accounts
Receivable and a credit to Sales. An example of an entry for Net Solutions sale on January 12, on
account of $510 follows. The cost of merchandise sold was $280.
Jan. 12 Accounts Receivable-Sims Co. 510 00
Sales 510 00
Invoice No. 7172.
12 Cost of Merchandise Sold 280 00
Merchandise Inventory 280 00
Cost of merchandise sold on invoice No. 7172
Sales Discounts
The terms of a sale are normally indicated on the invoice or bill that the seller sends to the buyer. An
example of a sales invoice is shown below.
The terms for when payments for merchandise are to be made, agreed on by the buyer and the seller, are
called the credit terms. If payment is required on delivery, the terms are cash or net cash. Otherwise,
the buyer is allowed an amount of time, known as the credit period, in which to pay. The credit period
usually begins with the date of the sale as shown on the invoice. If payment is due within a stated
number of days after the date of the invoice, such as 30 days, the terms are net 30 days. These terms may
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Fundamental of accounting one
be written as n/30. If payment is due by the end of the month in which the sale was made, the terms are
written as n/eom.
As a means of encouraging the buyer to pay before the end of the credit period, the seller may offer a
discount. For example, a seller may offer a 2% discount if the buyer pays within 10 days of the invoice
date. If the buyer does not take the discount, the total amount is due within 30 days. These terms are
expressed as 2/10, n/30 and are read as 2% discount if paid within 10 days, net amount due within 30
days. Discounts taken by the buyer for early payment are recorded as sales discounts by the seller. Since
managers may want to know the amount of the sales discounts for a period, the seller normally records
the sales discounts in a separate account. The sales discounts account is a contra (or offsetting) account
to Sales.
To illustrate, assume that cash is received within the discount period from the credit sale of $1,500,
shown on the invoice above. Net Solutions would record the receipt of the cash as follows:
Jan. 21 Cash 1470 00
Sales Discounts 30 00
Account Receivable-Omega
Technologies 1500 00
Collection on invoice No. 106-8, less 2%
discount.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Like sales discounts, sales returns and allowances reduce sales revenue. They also result in additional
shipping and other expenses. Since managers often want to know the amount of returns and allowances
for a period, the seller records sales returns and allowances in a separate account. Sales Returns and
Allowances is a contra (or offsetting) account to Sales. The seller debits Sales Returns and Allowances
for the amount of the return or allowance. If the original sale was on account, the seller credits Accounts
Receivable.
Since the merchandise inventory is kept up to date in a perpetual system, the seller adds the cost of the
returned merchandise to the merchandise inventory account. The seller must also credit the cost of
returned merchandise to the cost of merchandise sold account, since this account was debited when the
original sale was recorded. To illustrate, assume that the cost of the merchandise returned was $140. Net
Solutions records the credit memo as follows:
What if the buyer pays for the merchandise and the merchandise is later returned? In this case, the seller
may issue a credit and apply it against other accounts receivable owed by the buyer, or the cash may be
refunded. If the credit is applied against the buyer’s other receivables, the seller records entries similar to
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Fundamental of accounting one
those preceding. If cash is refunded for merchandise returned or for an allowance, the seller debits Sales
Returns and Allowances and credits Cash.
To illustrate, assume that on June 10, Net Solutions buys merchandise from Magna Data on account,
$900, terms FOB shipping point, and pays the transportation cost of $50. Net Solutions records these
two transactions as follows:
June 10 Merchandise Inventory 900 00
Accounts Payable – Magna Data 900 00
Purchased merchandise, terms FOB shipping point
10 Merchandise Inventory 50 00
Cash 50 00
Paid shipping cost on merchandise purchased
The ownership of the merchandise may pass to the buyer when the buyer receives the merchandise. In
this case, the terms are said to be FOB (free on board) destination. This term means that the seller
delivers the merchandise to the buyer’s final destination, free of transportation charges to the buyer. The
seller thus pays the transportation costs to the final destination. The seller debits Transportation Out or
Delivery Expense, which is reported on the seller’s income statement as an expense.
To illustrate, assume that on June 15, Net Solutions sells merchandise to Kranz Company on account,
$700, terms FOB destination. The cost of the merchandise sold is $480, and Net Solutions pays the
transportation cost of $40. Net Solutions records the sale, the cost of the sale, and the transportation cost
as follows:
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Fundamental of accounting one
As a convenience to the buyer, the seller may prepay the transportation costs, even though the terms are
FOB shipping point. The seller will then add the transportation costs to the invoice. The buyer will debit
Merchandise Inventory for the total amount of the invoice, including the transportation costs. Any
discount terms would not apply to the prepaid transportation costs.
To illustrate, assume that on June 20, Net Solutions sells merchandise to Planter Company on account,
$800, terms FOB shipping point. Net Solutions pays the transportation cost of $45 and adds it to the
invoice. The cost of the merchandise sold is $360. Net Solutions records these transactions as follows:
June 15 Accounts Receivable – Planter Company 800 00
Sales 800 00
Sold merchandise, terms FOB shipping point
15 Cost of Merchandise Sold 360 00
Merchandise Inventory 360 00
Recorded cost of merchandise sold to Planter
Company.
15 Accounts Receivable – Planter Company 45 00
Cash 45 00
Prepaid shipping cost on merchandise sold
Sales Taxes
Almost all states and many other taxing units levy a tax on sales of merchandise. The liability for the
sales tax is incurred when the sale is made. At the time of a cash sale, the seller collects the sales tax.
When a sale is made on account, the seller charges the tax to the buyer by debiting Accounts Receivable.
The seller credits the sales account for the amount of the sale and credits the tax to Sales Tax Payable.
For example, the seller would record a sale of $100 on account, subject to a tax of 6%, as follows:
Aug. 21 Accounts Receivable – Lemon Co. 106 00
Sales 100 00
Sales Tax Payable 6 00
Invoice No. 339
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Fundamental of accounting one
Normally on a regular basis, the seller pays to the taxing unit the amount of the sales tax collected. The
seller records such a payment as follows:
Sept. 15 Sales Tax Payable 2900 00
Cash 2900 00
Payment for sales taxes collected during August
Trade Discounts
Wholesalers are businesses that sell merchandise to other businesses rather than to the general public.
Many wholesalers publish catalogs. Rather than updating their catalogs frequently, wholesalers often
publish price updates, which may involve large discounts from the list prices in their catalogs. In
addition, wholesalers may offer special discounts to certain classes of buyers, such as government
agencies or businesses that order large quantities. Such discounts are called trade discounts.
Sellers and buyers do not normally record the list prices of merchandise and the related trade discounts
in their accounts. For example, assume that an item has a list price of $1,000 and a 40% trade discount.
The seller records the sale of the item at $600 [$1,000 less the trade discount of $400 ($1,000 X 40%)].
Likewise, the buyer records the purchase at $600.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Net Solutions is now using three-digit account numbers, which permits it to add new accounts as they
are needed. The first digit indicates the major financial statement classification (1 for assets, 2 for
liabilities, and so on). The second digit indicates the sub classification (e.g., 11 for current assets, 12 for
noncurrent assets). The third digit identifies the specific account (e.g., 110 for Cash, 123 for Store
Equipment).
Net Solutions is using a more complex numbering system because it has a greater variety of
transactions. In addition, its growth creates a need for more detailed information for use in managing it.
For example, a wages expense account was adequate for Net Solutions when it was a small service
business with few employees. However, as a merchandising business, Net Solutions now uses two
payroll accounts, one for Sales Salaries Expense and one for Office Salaries Expense.
3.7. Financial statements for a merchandising business
Income Statement
There are two form of income statement namely: multiple step income statement and single step
income statement.
Multiple – step income statement
It contains several sections, subsections, and subtotals.
Sales are the total amount charged customers for merchandise sold, including cash sales and sales on
account. Both sales returns and allowances and sales discounts are subtracted in arriving at net sales.
Sales returns and allowances are granted by the seller to customers for damaged or defective
merchandise. Sales returns and allowances are recorded when the merchandise is returned or when the
allowance is granted by the seller.
Sales discounts are granted by the seller to customers for early payment of amounts owed. Sales
discounts are recorded when the customer pays the bill.
Net sale is determined by subtracting sales returns and allowances and sales discounts from sales.
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Cost of merchandise sold is the cost of the merchandise sold to customers. For periodic inventory
method cost of merchandise sold can be determined as follows.
Cost of merchandise sold = Beginning inventory + Net Purchase – Ending inventory
Merchandise available for sale
Net Purchase = Purchase + Transportation in – Purchase return and allowance – Purchase discount
In contrast, under the perpetual method of accounting for merchandise inventory, each purchase and
sale of merchandise is recorded in the inventory and the cost of merchandise sold accounts. As a
result, the amount of merchandise available for sale and the amount sold are continuously
(perpetually) disclosed in the inventory records.
Gross profit is determined by subtracting the cost of merchandise sold from net sales. Operating
income, sometimes called income from operations, is determined by subtracting operating expenses
from gross profit. Most merchandising businesses classify operating expenses as either selling expenses
or administrative expenses. Expenses that are incurred directly in the selling of merchandise are selling
expenses. They include such expenses as salespersons’ salaries, store supplies used, depreciation of
store equipment, and advertising. Expenses incurred in the administration or general operations of the
business are administrative expenses or general expenses. Examples of these expenses are office
salaries, depreciation of office equipment, and office supplies used.
Other income and expense is revenue from sources other than the primary operating activity of a
business is classified as other income. In a merchandising business, these items include income from
interest, rent, and gains resulting from the sale of fixed assets. Expenses that cannot be traced directly to
operations are identified as other expense. Interest expense that results from financing activities and
losses incurred in the disposal of fixed assets are examples of these items. Other income and other
expense are offset against each other on the income statement. If the total of other income exceeds the
total of other expense, the difference is added to income from operations to determine net income. If the
reverse is true, the difference is subtracted from income from operations.
Net Solutions
Income Statement
For the Year Ended December 31, 2012
Revenue from sales:
Sales $720,185 00
Less: Sales returns and allowances $6,140 00
Sales discounts 5,790 00 11,930 00
Net sales $708,255 00
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To illustrate, Net Solutions’ inventory records indicate that $63,950 of merchandise should be available
for sale on December 31, 2007. The physical inventory taken on December 31, 2007, however, indicates
that only $62,150 of merchandise is actually available. Thus, the inventory shrinkage for the year ending
December 31, 2007, is $1,800 ($63,950 - $62,150), as shown at the left. This amount is recorded by the
following adjusting entry:
Dec. 31 Cost of Merchandise Sold 1800 00
Merchandise inventory 1800 00
To record inventory shrinkage
After this entry has been recorded, the accounting records agree with the actual physical inventory at the
end of the period. Since no system of procedures and safeguards can totally eliminate it, inventory
shrinkage is often considered a normal cost of operations. If the amount of the shrinkage is abnormally
large, it may be disclosed separately on the income statement. In such cases, the shrinkage may be
recorded in a separate account, such as Loss from Merchandise Inventory Shrinkage.
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The data needed for adjusting the accounts of Net Solutions and Trial Balance are as follows:
a) Physical merchandise inventory on December 31, 2011 ................. $62,150
b) Office supplies on hand on December 31, 2011 ..................................... 480
c) Insurance expired during 2011..............................................................1,910
d) Depreciation during 2011 on: Store equipment .................................... 3,100
Office equipment ..................................2,490
e) Salaries accrued on December 31, 2011: Sales salaries........$780
Office salaries . . . 360 1,140
f) Rent earned during 2011 ........................................................................ 600
Net Solutions
Trial Balance
December 31, 2011
Cash 52950 00
Accounts Receivable 91080 00
Merchandise inventory 63950 00
Office Supplies 1090 00
Prepaid Insurance 4560 00
Land 20000 00
Store Equipment 27100 00
Accumulated Depreciation – Store Equipment 2600 00
Office Equipment 15570 00
Accumulated Depreciation – Office Equipment 2230 00
Accounts Payable 22420 00
Unearned Rent 2400 00
Notes Payable 25000 00
Aymen, Capital 153800 00
Aymen, Drawing 18000 00
Sales 720185 00
Sales Returns and Allowance 6140 00
Sales Discounts 5790 00
Cost of Merchandise Sold 523505 00
Sales Salaries Expense 55450 00
Advertising Expense 10860 00
Miscellaneous Selling Expense 630 00
Office Salaries Expense 20660 00
Rent Expense 8100 00
Miscellaneous Administrative Expense 760 00
Interest expense 2440 00
928635 00 928635 00
Adjusting Entries
2011
Dec. 31 Cost of Merchandise Sold 510 1800 00
Merchandise Inventory 115 1800 00
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Fundamental of accounting one
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Work Sheet
Net Solution
Work Sheet
For the Year Ended December 31, 2011
Trial Balance Adjustments Adjusted Trial Balance Income Statement Statement of financial position
Account Title Dr Cr Dr Cr Dr Cr Dr Cr Dr Cr
Cash 52950 00 52950 00 52950 00
Accounts Receivable 91080 00 91080 00 91080 00
Merchandise inventory 63950 00 a1800 00 62150 00 62150 00
Office Supplies 1090 00 b610 00 480 00 480 00
Prepaid Insurance 4560 00 c1910 00 2650 00 2650 00
Land 20000 00 20000 00 20000 00
Store Equipment 27100 00 27100 00 27100 00
Accumulated Dep. –
Store Equipment 2600 00 d3100 00 5700 00 5700 00
Office Equipment 15570 00 15570 00 15570 00
Accumulated Dep. –
Office Equipment 2230 00 e2490 00 4720 00 4720 00
Accounts Payable 22420 00 22420 00 22420 00
Salaries Payable f1140 00 1140 00 1140 00
Unearned Rent 2400 00 g600 00 1800 00 1800 00
Notes Payable 25000 00 25000 00 25000 00
Aymen, Capital 153800 00 153800 00 153800 00
Aymen, Drawing 18000 00 18000 00 18000 00
Sales 720185 00 720185 00 720185 00
Sales Returns and
Allowance 6140 00 6140 00 6140 00
Sales Discounts 5790 00 5790 00 5790 00
Cost of Merchandise Sold 523505 00 a1800 00 525305 00 525305 00
Sales Salaries Expense 55450 00 f780 00 56230 00 56230 00
Advertising Expense 10860 00 10860 00 10860 00
Depreciation Expense –
Store Equipment d3100 00 3,100 00 3100 00
Miscellaneous Selling
Expense 630 00 630 00 630 00
Office Salaries Expense 20660 00 f360 00 21020 00 21020 00
Rent Expense 8100 00 8100 00 8100 00
Depreciation Expense –
Office Equipment e2490 00 2490 00 2490 00
Insurance Expense c1910 00 1910 00 1910 00
Office Supplies Expense b610 00 610 00 610 00
Miscellaneous
Administrative Expense 760 00 760 00 760 00
Rent Revenue g600 00 600 00 600 00
Interest expense 2440 00 2440 00 2440 00
928635 00 928635 11650 00 11650 00 935365 00 935365 00 645385 00 720785 00 289980 00 214580 00
Net Income 75400 00 75400 00
720785 00 720785 00 289980 00 289980
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Fundamental of accounting one
Closing Entries
The closing entries for a merchandising business are similar to those for a service business. The first
entry closes the temporary accounts with credit balances, such as Sales, to the income summary account.
The second entry closes the temporary accounts with debit balances, including Sales Returns and
Allowances, Sales Discounts, and Cost of Merchandise Sold, to the income summary account. The third
entry closes the balance of the income summary account to the owner’s capital account. The fourth entry
closes the owner’s drawing account to the owner’s capital account.
Journal Page
Post.
Date Description Ref. Debit Credit
2010
Dec. 31 Sales 410 720,185 00
Rent Revenue 610 600 00
Income Summary 312 720785 00
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16. Received cash on account from sale of May 6 to C. F. Howell Co., less discount.
19. Sold merchandise on account to ABC Company, $2,450. The cost of the merchandise sold was
$980.
22. Sold merchandise on account to Comer Co., $3,480, terms 2/10, n/30. The cost of the
merchandise sold was $1,400.
24. Sold merchandise for cash, $4,350. The cost of the merchandise sold was $1,750.
25. Received merchandise returned by Comer Co. from sale on May 22, $1,480. The cost of the
returned merchandise was $600.
31. Received cash from ABC Company for sales of May 19, less $140 service fee.
Instructions
a. Journalize the preceding transactions.
b. Journalize the adjusting entry for merchandise inventory shrinkage, $3,750.
3. During the current year, merchandise is sold for $250,000 cash and for $975,000 on account. The
cost of the merchandise sold is $735,000. What is the amount of the gross profit?
4. The following data were extracted from the accounting records of Meniscus Company for the year
ended April 30, 2006:
Merchandise Inventory, May 1, 2005 $ 121,200
Merchandise Inventory, April 30, 2006 142,000
Purchases 985,000
Purchases Returns and Allowances 23,500
Purchases Discounts 21,000
Sales 1,420,000
Transportation In 11,300
a. Prepare the cost of merchandise sold section of the income statement for the year ended April 30,
2006, using the periodic inventory method.
b. Determine the gross profit to be reported on the income statement for the year ended April 30,
2006.
5. The following selected accounts and their current balances appear in the ledger of Sombrero Co. for
the fiscal year ended November 30, 2006:
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Chapter 4:
Accounting Systems
An accounting system is the methods and procedures for collecting, classifying,
summarizing, and reporting a business’s financial and operating information. The accounting
system for most businesses is more complex. Accounting systems for large businesses must
be able to collect, accumulate, and report many types of transactions.
Accounting systems evolve through a three-step process as a business grows and changes.
The first step in this process is analysis, which consists of (1) identifying the needs of those
who use the business’s financial information and (2) determining how the system should
provide this information. In the second step, the system is designed so that it will meet the
users’ needs. This system included a chart of accounts, a two-column journal, and a general
ledger. Finally, the system is implemented and used. Once a system has been implemented,
feedback, or input, from the users of the information can be used to analyze and improve the
system.
Source Documents: provide the basic information to be processed by the accounting system.
Invoices from suppliers, bills sent to customers, and payroll records are some examples of
source documents. You have already seen their meaning and importance in previous chapter.
Input Devices: capture information from source documents and enable its transfer to the
information-processing component of the system. Journal entries, both papers based and
electronic are a type of input devices.
Information Processors: An information processor is a system that interprets, transforms
and summarizes information for use in analysis and reporting. The information processing in
an accounting system can be manual or computerized. Now a days, computer is being
increasingly used to process information.
Information Storage: After being input, processed data are usually saved for use in future
analysis or report. Information storage is the component of an accounting system that keeps
data in a form accessible to information processors.
Output Device: are the means to take information out of an accounting system and make it
available to users. Output devices include printers, and monitors, which provide such outputs
as financial statements, bills to customers and internal reports.
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Internal controls and information processing methods are essential in an accounting system.
Internal controls are the policies and procedures that protect assets from misuse, ensure that
business information is accurate, and ensure that laws and regulations are being followed.
Processing methods are the means by which the system collects, summarizes, and reports
accounting information. These methods may be either manual or computerized. In the
following sections, we will discuss manual accounting systems that use special journals, and
computerized accounting systems.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Subsidiary Ledgers
An accounting system should be designed to provide information on the amounts due from
various customers (accounts receivable) and amounts owed to various creditors (accounts
payable). A separate account for each customer and creditor could be added to the ledger.
However, as the number of customers and creditors increases, the ledger becomes awkward
to use when it includes many customers and creditors. A large number of individual accounts
with a common characteristic can be grouped together in a separate ledger called a subsidiary
ledger. The primary ledger, which contains all of the balance sheet and income statement
accounts, is then called the general ledger. Each subsidiary ledger is represented in the
general ledger by a summarizing account, called a controlling account. The sum of the
balances of the accounts in a subsidiary ledger must equal the balance of the related
controlling account.
The individual accounts with customers are arranged in alphabetical order in a subsidiary
ledger called the accounts receivable subsidiary ledger, or customers ledger. The
controlling account in the general ledger that summarizes the debits and credits to the
individual customer accounts is Accounts Receivable. The individual accounts with creditors
are arranged in alphabetical order in a subsidiary ledger called the accounts payable
subsidiary ledger, or creditors ledger. The related controlling account in the general ledger
is Accounts Payable.
Special Journals
One method of processing data more efficiently in a manual accounting system is to expand
the all-purpose two-column journal to special journal. Each special journal is designed to be
used for recording a single kind of transaction that occurs frequently. For example, since
most businesses have many transactions in which cash is paid out, they will likely use a
special journal for recording cash payments. Likewise, they will use another special journal
for recording cash receipts. Special journals are a method of summarizing transactions, which
is a basic feature of any accounting system.
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Fundamental of accounting one
The format and number of special journals that a business uses depends upon the nature of
the business. The transactions that occur most often in a small- to medium-size service
business and the special journals in which they are recorded are as follows:
Revenue Journal: is used only for recording fees earned on account. Cash fees earned would
be recorded in the cash receipts journal.
For example:
These transactions could be recorded more efficiently in a revenue journal, as shown bellow.
In each revenue transaction, the amount of the debit to Accounts Receivable is the same as
the amount of the credit to Fees Earned. Therefore, only a single amount column is necessary.
The date, invoice number, customer name, and amount are entered separately for each
transaction. At the end of each month, the amount column of the revenue journal is totaled.
This total is equal to the sum of the month’s debits to the individual accounts in the
subsidiary ledger. It is posted in the general ledger as a debit to Accounts Receivable and a
credit to Fees Earned.
Cash receipts journal: All transactions that involve the receipt of cash are recorded in a
cash receipts journal.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Purchase journal: is designed for recording all purchases on account. Cash purchases
would be recorded in the cash payments journal.
Cash payments journal: The special columns for the cash payments journal are determined
in the same manner as for the revenue, cash receipts, and purchases journals. The determining
factors are the kinds of transactions to be recorded and how often they occur. The cash
payments journal has a Cash Cr. column.
The all-purpose two-column journal, called the general journal or simply the journal, can be
used for entries that do not fit into any of the special journals. For example, adjusting and
closing entries are recorded in the general journal.
4.2.Computerized Accounting systems
Computerized accounting systems have become more widely used as the cost of hardware
and software has declined. In addition, computerized accounting systems have three main
advantages over manual systems. First, computerized systems simplify the record-keeping
process. Transactions are recorded in electronic forms and, at the same time, posted
electronically to general and subsidiary ledger accounts. Second, computerized systems are
generally more accurate than manual systems. Third, computerized systems provide
management current account balance information to support decision making, since account
balances are posted as the transactions occur.
In a computerized system, special journals typically are not used. Instead, transactions are
recorded in electronic forms, which are automatically posted to affected accounts at the time
the form is completed. In a manual system, the controlling account balance can be reconciled
to the sum of the individual customer account balances to identify any posting and
mathematical errors. The computer, however, does not make posting and mathematical
errors. Thus, there are no month-end postings to controlling accounts. Controlling accounts
are simply the sum of the balances of any individual subsidiary account balances.
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Chapter5:
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Fundamental of accounting one
example, the following entry records a clerk’s cash sales of $3,150 when the actual cash on
hand is $3,142:
Cash 3142 00
Cash Short and Over 8 00
Sales 3150 00
To record cash sales and actual cash on hand
At the end of the accounting period, a debit balance in the cash short and over account is
included in Miscellaneous Administrative Expense in the income statement. A credit balance
is included in the Other Income section. If a clerk consistently has significant cash short and
over amounts, the supervisor may require the clerk to take additional training. After a cash
register clerk’s cash has been counted and recorded on a memorandum form, the cash is then
placed in a store until it can be deposited in the bank. The supervisor forwards the clerk’s
cash register records to the Accounting Department, where they become the basis for
recording the transactions for the day.
The remittance advices and their summary totals are delivered to the Accounting Department.
An accounting clerk then prepares the records of the transactions and posts them to the
customer accounts. When cash is deposited in the bank, the bank normally stamps a duplicate
copy of the deposit ticket with the amount received. This bank receipt is returned to the
Accounting Department, where a clerk then compares the receipt with the total amount that
should have been deposited. This control helps ensure that all the cash is deposited and that
no cash is lost or stolen on the way to the bank. The separation of the duties of the Cashier’s
Department, which handles cash, and the Accounting Department, which records cash, is a
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Fundamental of accounting one
preventive control. If Accounting Department employees both handled and recorded cash, an
employee could steal cash and change the accounting records to hide the theft.
A voucher system is a set of procedures for authorizing and recording liabilities and cash
payments. Generally, a voucher is any document that serves as proof of authority to pay cash.
In many businesses, however, a voucher is a special form for recording relevant data about a
liability and the details of its payment. Each voucher includes the creditor’s invoice number
and the amount and terms of the invoice. A voucher is normally prepared in the Accounting
Department, after all necessary supporting documents have been received. For example,
when a voucher is prepared for the purchase of goods, the voucher should be supported by
the supplier’s invoice, a purchase order, and a receiving report.
In preparing the voucher, an accounts payable clerk verifies the quantity, price, and
mathematical accuracy of the supporting documents. The payment of the voucher is recorded
in the same manner as the payment of an account payable. A voucher system may be either
manual or computerized. In a computerized system, properly approved supporting documents
would be entered directly into computer files.
5.2.Bank reconciliation
A bank account is one of the primary tools a business uses to control cash. For example,
businesses often require that all cash receipts be initially deposited in a bank account.
Likewise, businesses usually use checks to make all cash payments, except for very small
amounts. When such a system is used, there is a double record of cash transactions one by the
business and the other by the bank.
A business can use a bank statement to compare the cash transactions recorded in its
accounting records to those recorded by the bank. The cash balance shown by a bank
statement is usually different from the cash balance shown in the accounting records of the
business. This difference may be the result of a delay by either party in recording
transactions. The difference may be the result of errors made by either the business or the
bank in recording transactions.
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Fundamental of accounting one
For effective control, the reasons for the difference between the cash balance on the bank
statement and the cash balance in the accounting records should be determined by preparing
bank reconciliation. A bank reconciliation is a listing of the items and amounts that cause the
cash balance reported in the bank statement to differ from the balance of the cash account in
the ledger. Bank reconciliation is usually divided into two sections: cash balance according to
the bank statement and cash balance according to the depositor’s records. The two amounts
designated as the adjusted balance must be equal. The content of the bank reconciliation is
shown below.
Add deposits not recorded by the bank to the balance according to the bank statement.
Deduct checks outstanding that have not been paid by the bank from the balance
according to the bank statement.
Add credit memorandums that have not been recorded to the balance according to the
depositor’s records.
For example, a bank would issue a credit memorandum for a note receivable and
interest that it collected for a depositor.
Deduct debit memorandums that have not been recorded from the balance according to
the depositor’s records.
For example, a bank normally issues debit memorandums for service charges and
check printing charges. A bank also issues debit memorandums for not-sufficient-
funds checks.
A not-sufficient-funds (NSF) check is a customer’s check that was recorded and deposited
but was not paid when it was presented to the customer’s bank for payment. NSF checks
are normally charged back to the customer as an account receivable.
List any errors discovered during the preceding steps.
To illustrate bank reconciliation, we will use the bank statement for Power Networking. This
bank statement shows a balance of $3,359.78 as of July 31. The cash balance in Power
Networking’s ledger as of the same date is $2,549.99. The following reconciling items are
revealed by using the steps outlined above:
Deposit of July 31, not recorded on bank statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . $ 816.20
Checks outstanding: No. 812, $1,061.00; No. 878, $435.39; No. 883, $48.60 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . 1,544.99
Note plus interest of $8 collected by bank (credit memorandum), not recorded in the journal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 408.00
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Fundamental of accounting one
Check from customer (Thomas Ivey) returned by bank because of insufficient funds (NSF) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . 300.00
Bank service charges (debit memorandum), not recorded in the journal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 18.00
Check No. 879 for $732.26 to Taylor Co. on account, recorded in the journal as $723.26 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . 9.00
The bank reconciliation based on the bank statement and the reconciling items is shown
below:
Power Networking
Bank Reconciliation
July 31, 2010
Cash balance according to bank Cash balance according to
statement $335 7 depositor’s records $254 99
9 8 9
Add: deposit of July 31, not recorded Add: note and interest collected
by bank 8162 2 by bank 408 00
0
$417 9 $295 99
5 8 7
Journal entries should be made for any unrecorded item on depositor’s book. The journal
entries for Power Networking, based on the preceding bank reconciliation, are as follows:
July 31 Cash 408 00
Notes Receivable 400 00
Interest Revenue 8 00
Note collected by bank
31 Accounts Receivable – Thomas Ivey 300 00
Miscellaneous Administrative Expense 18 00
Accounts Payable – Tylor Co. 9 00
Cash 327 00
NSF Check, bank service charges, and error in
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Fundamental of accounting one
A petty cash fund is established by first estimating the amount of cash needed for payments
from the fund during a period, such as a week or a month. After necessary approvals, a check
is written and cashed for this amount. The money obtained from cashing the check is then
given to an employee, called the petty cash custodian, who is authorized to disburse monies
from the fund. For control purposes, the company may place restrictions on the maximum
amount and the types of payments that can be made from the fund. Each time monies are paid
from petty cash, the custodian records the details of the payment on a petty cash receipt form.
The petty cash fund is normally replenished at periodic intervals, or when it is depleted or
reaches a minimum amount. When a petty cash fund is replenished, the accounts debited are
determined by summarizing the petty cash receipts. A check is then written for this amount,
payable to the petty cash custodian.
To illustrate normal petty cash fund entries, assume that a petty cash fund of $100 is
established on August 1. The entry to record this transaction is as follows:
Aug. 1 Petty Cash 100 00
Cash 100 00
Established petty cash fund
At the end of August, the petty cash receipts indicate expenditures for the following items:
office supplies, $28; postage (office supplies), $22; store supplies, $35; and daily newspapers
(miscellaneous administrative expense), $3. The entry to replenish the petty cash fund on
August 31 is as follows:
Aug. 31 Office Supplies 50 00
Store Supplies 35 00
Miscellaneous Administrative Expense 3 00
Cash 88 00
Replenished petty cash fund
5.4. Classifications of receivables
Many companies sell on credit in order to sell more services or products. The receivables that
result from such sales are normally classified as accounts receivable or notes receivable. The
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Fundamental of accounting one
term receivables includes all money claims against other entities, including people, business
firms, and other organizations.
Regardless of the care used in granting credit and the collection procedures used, a part of the
credit sales will not be collectible. The operating expense incurred because of the failure to
collect receivables is called uncollectible accounts expense, bad debts expense, or doubtful
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Fundamental of accounting one
accounts expense. There are two methods of accounting for receivables that appear to be
uncollectible. The allowance method provides an expense for uncollectible receivables in
advance of their write-off. The other procedure, called the direct write-off method,
recognizes the expense only when accounts are judged to be worthless.
Allowance method
The allowance method emphasizes reporting uncollectible accounts expense in the period in
which the related sales occur. This emphasis on matching expenses with related revenue is
the preferred method of accounting for uncollectible receivables. To illustrate this method,
we will use assumed data for Richards Company. This new business began in August and
chose to use the calendar year as its fiscal year. The accounts receivable account has a
balance of $105,000 at the end of December. Based on a careful study, Richards estimates
that a total of $4,000 will eventually be uncollectible. The following adjusting entry at the
end of the fiscal period records this estimate:
Dec. 31 Uncollectible Accounts Expense 4000 00
Allowance for Doubtful Accounts 4000 00
Allowance for Doubtful Accounts is a contra asset account. The adjusting entry reduces
receivables to their net realizable value and matches the uncollectible expense with revenues.
The entry above serves two purposes. First, it reduces the value of the receivables to the
amount of cash expected to be realized in the future. This amount, which is $101,000
($105,000 - $4,000), is called the net realizable value of the receivables. Second, the
adjusting entry matches the $4,000 expense of uncollectible accounts with the related
revenues of the period. The balance of the Uncollectible Accounts Expense is reported in the
current period income statement, normally as an administrative expense.
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Fundamental of accounting one
Estimating Uncollectable
The estimate of uncollectible at the end of a fiscal period is based on past experience and
forecasts of the future. When the general economy is doing well, the amount of uncollectible
expense is normally less than it would be when the economy is doing poorly. The estimate of
uncollectible is usually based on either (1) the amount of sales, as shown on the income
statement for the period, or (2) the amount of the receivables, as shown on the balance sheet
at the end of the period, and the age of the receivable accounts.
Estimate Based on Sales: The amount of credit sales during the period used to estimate the
amount of uncollectible accounts expense. The amount of this estimate is added to whatever
balance exists in Allowance for Doubtful Accounts. For example, 1% of credit sales will be
uncollectible. The estimate-based-on-sales method emphasizes the matching of uncollectible
accounts expense with the related sales of the period.
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Fundamental of accounting one
If a customer later pays on an account that has been written off, then:
Nov. 21 Accounts Receivable – D.L. Ross 420 00
Uncollectible Accounts Expense 420 00
To reinstate account written off earlier in the
year
Cash 420 00
Accounts Receivable – D.L. Ross 420 420
To record cash collection
5.7. Accounting for notes receivable
A note is therefore a stronger legal claim if there is a court action. A promissory note is a
written promise to pay a sum of money on demand or at a definite time. It is payable to the
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Fundamental of accounting one
order of a person or firm or to the bearer or holder of the note. It is signed by the person or
firm that makes the promise. The one to whose order the note is payable is called the payee,
and the one making the promise is called the maker.
Due Date: The date a note is to be paid is called the due date or maturity date. The period
of time between the issuance date and the due date of a short-term note may be stated in
either days or months.
Interest: A note normally specifies that interest be paid for the period between the issuance
date and the due date. Notes covering a period of time longer than one year normally provide
that the interest be paid semiannually, quarterly, or at some other stated interval. When the
term of the note is less than one year, the interest is usually payable on the due date of the
note.
Interest = Principal x Rate x Time
Maturity Value: The amount that is due at the maturity or due date is called the maturity
value. The maturity value of a note is the sum of the face amount and the interest
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Fundamental of accounting one
If the account receivable is uncollectible, the amount of $6,060 will be written off against the
Allowance for Doubtful Accounts.
If a note matures in a later fiscal period, the interest accrued in the period in which the note is
received must be recorded by an adjusting entry. For example, assume that a 90-day, 12%
note dated December 1, 2010, is received from Crawford Company to settle its account,
which has a balance of $4,000. Assuming that the accounting period ends on December 31,
the entries to record the receipt of the note, accrued interest, and payment of the note at
maturity are shown below.
2010
Dec. 1 Notes Receivable 4000 00
Accounts Receivable – Crawford Company 4000 00
Received note in settlement of account.
Dec. 31 Interest Receivable 40 00
Interest Revenue 40 00
Adjusting entry for accrued interest, $4,000 x 0.12 x 30/360
2011
Mar. 1 Cash 4120 00
Notes Receivable 4000 00
Interest Receivable 40 00
Interest Revenue 80 00
Received payment of note and interest; maturity value, $4,000 +
($4,000 x 0.12 x 90/360).
5.8. Factoring Receivables
Companies often sell their receivables to other companies. This transaction is called
factoring the receivables, and the buyer of the receivables is called a factor. A factor is a
finance company or bank that buys receivables from businesses and then collects the
payments directly from the customers. An advantage of factoring is that the company selling
its receivables receives immediate cash for operating and other needs. In addition, depending
upon the factoring agreement, some of the risk of uncollectible accounts may be shifted to the
factor.
Companies sell receivables for two major reasons. First, they may be the only reasonable
source of cash. When money is tight, companies may not be able to borrow money in the
usual credit markets. Or, if money is available, the cost of borrowing may be prohibitive. A
second reason for selling receivables is that billing and collection are often time-
consuming and costly. It is often easier for a retailer to sell the receivables to another party
with expertise in billing and collection matters. Credit card companies such as MasterCard,
Visa, and Discover specialize in billing and collecting accounts receivable. Factoring
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Fundamental of accounting one
arrangements vary widely. Typically the factor charges a commission to the company that is
selling the receivables.
To illustrate, (1) Assume that Hendredon Furniture factors $600,000 of receivables to Federal
Factors. Federal Factors assesses a service charge of 2% of the amount of receivables sold.
The journal entry to record the sale by Hendredon Furniture is as follows.
Cash 588,000 00
Service Charge Expense (2% x $600,000) 12,000 00
Accounts Receivable 600,000 00
To record the sale of accounts receivable
(2) Assume that a 90-day, 12%, $1,800 note receivable from Pryor & Co., dated April 8, is
discounted at the payee’s bank on May 3 at the rate of 14%. The data used in determining the
effect of the transaction are as follows:
Face value of note dated April 8 $1,800.00
Interest on note (90 days at 12%) 54.00
Maturity value of note due July 7 $1,854.00
Discount on maturity value (65 days from
May 3 to July 7, at 14%) (65/360*0.14*1854) 46.87
Proceeds $1,807.13
The endorser records as interest revenue the excess of the proceeds from discounting the
note, $1,807.13, over its face value, $1,800, as follows:
Cash 1807 13
Notes Receivable 1800 00
Interest Revenue 7 13
Discounted $1,800, 90-day, 12% note at 14%.
What if the proceeds from discounting a note receivable are less than the face value? When
this situation occurs, the endorser records the excess of the face value over the proceeds as
interest expense. The length of the discount period and the difference between the interest
rate and the discount rate determine whether interest expense or interest revenue will result
from discounting.
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Fundamental of accounting one
may require depositors to maintain minimum cash balances in their bank accounts. Such a
balance is called a compensating balance. This requirement is often imposed by the bank as
a part of loan agreement or line of credit.
All receivables that are expected to be realized in cash within a year are presented in the
Current Assets section of the balance sheet. It is normal to list the assets in the order of their
liquidity. This is the order in which they are expected to be converted to cash during normal
operations. The allowance for doubtful accounts is subtracted from the accounts receivable.
Other disclosures related to receivables are presented either on the face of the financial
statements or in the accompanying notes. Such disclosures include the market (fair) value of
the receivables. In addition, if unusual credit risks exist within the receivables, the nature of
the risks should be disclosed.
Work sheet for chapter 6
1. The bank statement for Urethane Company for June 30, 2010, indicates a balance of
$9,143.11. All cash receipts are deposited each evening in a night depository, after
banking hours. The accounting records indicate the following summary data for cash
receipts and payments for June:
Cash balance as of June 1 $ 3,943.50
Total cash receipts for June 28,971.60
Total amount of checks issued in June 28,388.85
Comparing the bank statement and the accompanying canceled checks and memorandums
with the records reveal the following reconciling items:
a. The bank had collected for Urethane Company $1,030 on a note left for collection. The
face of the note was $1,000.
b. A deposit of $1,852.21, representing receipts of June 30, had been made too late to appear
on the bank statement.
c. Checks outstanding totaled $5,265.27.
d. A check drawn for $139 had been incorrectly charged by the bank as $157.
e. A check for the payment Avery Equipment Company on account amounted $30 was
erroneously recorded in the journal for $240.
f. Bank service charges for June amounted to $18.20.
Instructions
i. Prepare bank reconciliation for June.
ii. Journalize the entries that should be made by Urethane Company.
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Fundamental of accounting one
2. The actual cash received from cash sales was $17,572.40, and the amount indicated by
the cash register total was $17,589.65. Journalize the entry to record the cash receipts and
cash sales.
3. The actual cash received from cash sales was $6,973.60, and the amount indicated by the
cash register total was $6,932.15. Journalize the entry to record the cash receipts and cash
sales.
4. The Orchid Company completed the following selected transactions during June 2011:
June 1. Established a petty cash fund of $600
6. The cash sales for the day, according to the cash register records, totaled
$7,998.50. The actual cash received from cash sales was $8,008.15.
30. Petty cash on hand was $50.75. Replenished the petty cash fund for the following
disbursements, each evidenced by a petty cash receipt:
June 3. Store supplies, $30.75.
8. Express charges on merchandise purchased, $100.75 (Merchandise
Inventory).
12. Office supplies, $74.30.
15. Office supplies, $35.20.
19. Postage stamps, $52.00 (Office Supplies).
20. Repair to fax, $110.00 (Miscellaneous Administrative Expense).
21. Repair to printer, $51.50 (Miscellaneous Administrative Expense).
22. Postage due on special delivery letter, $18.00 (Miscellaneous
Administrative Expense).
27. Express charges on merchandise purchased, $65.50 (Merchandise
Inventory).
30. The cash sales for the day, according to the cash register records, totaled $9,009.50.
The actual cash received from cash sales was $8,988.35.
30. Decreased the petty cash fund by $150.
Instructions: Journalize the transactions.
5. Ditzler Company, a construction supply company, uses the allowance method of
accounting for uncollectible accounts receivable. Selected transactions completed by
Ditzler Company are as follows:
Feb. 1. Sold merchandise on account to Ames Co., $8,000. The cost of the merchandise sold
was $4,500.
Mar. 15. Accepted a 60-day, 12% note for $8,000 from Ames Co. on account
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Fundamental of accounting one
Estimate what the proper balance of the allowance for doubtful accounts should be as of
December 31, 2010.
Assume that the allowance for doubtful accounts for Kubota Co. had a debit balance of
$1,575 as of December 31, 2010. Journalize the adjusting entry for uncollectible accounts as
of December 31, 2006.
7. At the end of the current year, the accounts receivable account has a debit balance of
$840,000, and net sales for the year total $7,150,000. Determine the amount of the
adjusting entry to provide for doubtful accounts under each of the following assumptions:
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Fundamental of accounting one
8. Magpie Interior Decorators issued a 120-day, 6% note for $24,000, dated April 10, to
Peel’s Furniture Company on account.
a. Determine the due date of the note.
b. Determine the maturity value of the note.
c. Journalize the entries to record the following: (1) receipt of the note by the payee, and
(2) receipt by the payee of payment of the note at maturity.
9. Journalize the following transactions of Prairie Theater Productions:
July 8. Received a $30,000, 90-day, 8% note dated July 8 from Pennington Company on
account
Oct. 6. The note is dishonored by Pennington Company.
Nov. 5. Received the amount due on the dishonored note plus interest for 30 days at 10% on
the total amount charged to Pennington Company on October 6
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