Business Costs
Business Costs In a business there are three different types of business costs these costs are: Direct & Indirect Direct costs are expenses that can be attributed making a particular product such costs include factory labour, raw materials and operating machinery. Indirect costs are the general overheads of running a business for example; salaries, telephone bills and rent. Firms that make more than one product will want each one to earn enough sales revenue to cover its direct costs and make a contribution to indirect costs. If all the products together make enough contribution then the business will make a profit. Fixed & Variable Fixed costs are costs which do not vary. They are mostly indirect costs - Management salaries, telephone bills and office rent. They have to be paid even if the firm produces nothing. Variable costs are costs that cab change every time a bill etc... must be paid, these are mostly direct costs such as factory labour, raw material etc...Some costs are semi variable, they only vary slightly because they have a large fixed element, for example workers wages - most people receive a basic salaries and only part of their pay is linked to output. Fixed costs are usually only fixed over a short period of time, if a firm is expanding, it will take on more managers and rent more offices so the fixed cost will increase. A firm can work out their
Depreciation of fixed assets.
Depreciation Fixed assets are used again and again over a long period of time. During this time the value of many assets falls. This is called depreciation. Each accountants must work how much depreciation to allow each fixed assets. This can then be used in the balance sheet and profit and loss account. The balance sheet will show the book value the book value of assets. This is their original value minus depreciation. Depreciation is shown in the profit and loss account under expenses. This indicates that part of the original value is 'used up' each year. Eventually the entire value of the assets will appear as expenses, when the assets depreciate fully. This process of reducing the original value by the amount of depreciation is known as writing off. There are good reasons why a firm should allow for depreciation each year in its accounts-: * If it dose not, accounts will be inaccurate. If the original value of the assets were placed on the balance sheet this would overstate the value. Each value of the assets falls each year as they depreciate. * Fixed assets generate profit many years. It seems logical to write off the value of the assets over a whole period of time rather than when it is first bought. This matches the benefits from the assets more closely with
