Understanding Balance sheet

A balance sheet is a quick picture of the financial condition of a business at a specific period in time. The activities of a business fall into two separate groups that are reported by an accountant. They are profit-making activities, which includes sales and expenses. This can also be referred to as operating activities. There are also financing and investing activities that include securing money from debt and equity sources of capital, returning capital to these sources, making distributions from profit to the owners, making investments in assets and eventually disposing of the assets. (Read More)

Business Accounting and The Importance of Keeping Good Books

There has probably been no great accountant turned entrepreneur then Capitalist then Rockefeller who used his accounting skills to take over the entire Oil Industry back in the day. He kept immaculate books and started out as a promising young accountant. When he noticed competitors he would often ask them to join him and show him his books and costs. Why they were simply blown away and they knew they could not compete with his low costs and so they either merged or sold out to the young Rockefeller. (Read More)

Bookkeeping Tips

Bookkeeping is the process of maintaining books of accounts involving daily transactions. Bookkeeping indicates the exact position of business finances. Bookkeeping can be done manually or through a computerized system. Manual bookkeeping is doable for beginners and small business firms, but as the business develops, a computerized system of maintaining accounts will be beneficial. (Read More)

Sample Company File in QuickBooks - Valuable Tool for Self-Study

Have you ever wondered what would happen in your QuickBooks file if you performed certain operations, but were too afraid to try? Did you know that you can experiment with your ideas, and not make a mess in your QuickBooks file? (Read More)

Four Symptoms Your Small Business Accounting System Doesn't Work

Every year about this time, I see too many accounting systems that don’t work… QuickBooks and PeachTree and Microsoft Small Business Accounting programs that don’t do what their small business users want or need. Sometimes, people know their accounting systems don’t work. And they don’t care. But, sadly, sometimes, the struggling small business person doesn’t even know his or her system isn’t working until it’s too late. Until the business fails because the owners don’t realize they aren’t making money. (Read More)

Control Your Accounting and Bookkeeping Costs

When you first started your business, you probably did your own accounting; and that worked out fine. You were short on spendable capital and doing most of the necessary chores yourself was the only way to get started. But eventually, you got to a point where you really needed to concentrate on the income-producing aspects of your business and hire others to tend to the details. (Read More)

UPS Announces Change in Pension Accounting Method
UPS today announced an accounting change relating to expense recognition for company-sponsored pension and postretirement benefit plans. The new method, adopted in the f (Fri, 27 Jan 2012 05:30:00 -0800)

Accounting rulesetters to reopen bank asset rule
LONDON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Two top accountingrulesetters will try again to reach a common global method forbanks to classify and measure assets so that investors caneasily compare financial statements. ... (Fri, 27 Jan 2012 08:55:51 -0800)

UPS says accounting charge will cut 4Q results
UPS says a charge related to a new accounting method for pensions and retirement plans will significantly reduce its reported earnings for the fourth quarter and full year of 2011. (Fri, 27 Jan 2012 06:07:39 -0800)

Suffolk Bancorp Changes Accounting Firms
Suffolk Bancorp today announced that, on January 19, 2012, the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of Suffolk Bancorp determined not to engage Gra (Wed, 25 Jan 2012 14:00:00 -0800)

FirstEnergy Improves Accounting Method for Retirement Benefits, Provides 2011 Earnings Preview
AKRON, Ohio, Jan. 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- FirstEnergy Corp., (NYSE: FE - News) today announced it has adopted a new policy that changes the method of accounting for pensions and other post-retirement benefits ... (Thu, 26 Jan 2012 05:20:00 -0800)

Accounting error slashes Enterprise Financial profits
The Clayton-based bank holding company reported too much income from loans acquired from failed banks. (Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:39:17 -0800)

Timothy J. Poché Joins Shaw as Chief Accounting Officer
The Shaw Group Inc. today announced that Timothy J. Poché has joined the company as its chief accounting officer. He brings more than 20 years of experience and was mo (Thu, 26 Jan 2012 06:00:00 -0800)

David B. Brown Joins MoneyGram as Senior Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer
MoneyGram International , a leading global money transfer company, announced today that David B. Brown has been named senior vice president and chief accounting officer (Thu, 26 Jan 2012 00:37:00 -0800)

More Accounting News

• Accounting Newsletter (1/21/2012)
• Accounting Newsletter (1/14/2012)
• Accounting Newsletter (1/6/2012)
• Accounting Newsletter (12/29/2011)
• Accounting Newsletter (12/21/2011)