存货跌价准备，看上去很美

　　Provision for obsolete stock is just looked beautiful

　　会计有八大资产减值准备：坏账准备、存货跌价准备、长期股权投资减值准备，持有至到期投资减值准备，固定资产减值准备，无形资产减值准备，贷款损失准备。其他资产减值准备。本来出台这些准备，是为了更公允地反映资产价值。但实际操作起来，问题很多。现以存货跌价准备为例来说说。

　　There are eight impairments of assets in accounting: provision for bad debts, provision for obsolete stock, provision for impairment loss of long-term equity investments, short-term investments falling price reserves, fixed assets depreciation reserves, intangible assets depreciation reserves, trademark rights depreciation reserves and other depreciation reserves. Those depreciation reserves are assumed to make the balance sheet fairer. But in fact, they are just looked beautiful. It’s hard to make the balance sheet fairer. Now, I’d like to take the case of the provision for obsolete stock as an example.

　　存货，准则规定按照成本与可变现净值孰低计量。成本基本上是账面数，很好获取，可这个可变现净值就难办了。准则规定：可变现净值为存货的预计售价减去将要发生的成本、估计的销售费用及相关税费后的金额。虽只聊聊一行字，可操作起来就犯难了。

　　According to China GAAP, obsolete stock can be measured by the less one of the cost and the net realizable value. Cost can be easily found in the general ledger, but it is hard to determine the net realizable value. The China GAAP prescribes the net realizable value is the balance of the selling price after estimated cost and relevant taxes. The definition is quite clear, but it’s not easy to manipulate.

　　存货的预计售价：

　　Selling price of obsolete stock：

　　由于是预计，就存在不同的方法。原材料的价值是基本由产成品决定的，所以现只讨论产成品（库存商品）。库存商品一般都有标准零售价，可实际销售时很多时候存在打折情况，究竟怎样预计这个售价呢。是根据过去一段时间实际销售情况确定，还是根据库龄确定？

　　The selling price is difficult to assess as the obsolete stock haven’t been sold. The value of raw material is based on the value of finished goods, so we’re going to talk about the finished goods only. Finish good has a fixed price, but how to measure the discount that hasn’t been decided. How to determine the selling price is still a problem, shall we determine it by the average price of the past, or by the aging of the obsolete stock?

　　依据准则精神，根据过去一段时间实际销售情况确定是比较合理的，但根据库龄确定也是有一定理由的，一是操作简单，库龄一般是现成的，而销售情况复杂要一定时间整理加工。二是库龄长的话基本上就表示难以出售，那预计售价与库龄还是高度相关的。根据库龄确定不好的地方在于：一是与可变现净值毕竟意思有差异，解释起来费时费力；二是预计售价与库龄虽是高度相关的，但这个相关程度很难用直观的公式表达，因为库龄一样的不同商品销售情况也不大一样，一概而论有违专业精神。

　　According to the proposition of the china GAAP, the method of the average price in the past is better. The method on the aging of finished goods has two advantages. (1) It is easy to get the aging of finished goods in the general ledger, whereas the average price of the past is not easily gotten. (2) There is relativity between the selling price and the aging. The longer the aging is, the harder to sell the finished goods. But the method of the aging has weaknesses. (1) The aging of finished goods is not equal to the net realizable value. (2) Although the aging of finished goods highly associated with the selling price, but their relativity is not formula defined.

　　权衡利弊，那我们采用“根据过去一段时间实际销售情况确定”的方法。问题出来了，“过去一段时间”究竟多长，但国家并没规定，不同的行业可能有不同的标准，同一行业不同公司可能有不同的标准，同一公司不同产品可能有不同的标准，同一产品由于也存在产品生命周期等因素可能有不同的标准，这就影响了横向可比性（不同公司间）和纵向可比性（同一公司不同时期）。横向可比性需要国家协调，我们先不管，那为了保持纵向可比性，就先统一划定一段时间（比如说一年）。一些贵重商品一年也不会卖的怎么确定预计售价，那是不是要超出一年期限去追到上一笔的销售情况，追到上一笔的话就影响了政策的稳定同时上一笔的销售与现在情况差异很大时又怎么解决？还有就是存量很大，过去一年只售出一点，以那一点的销售价格根本不可能出售全部存量，那预计售价又怎么确定？有时候就只能估计了，以处理品的价格确定了。

　　What if we determine the selling price by the average price in the past, how do we define the period of the past? The china GAAP does not have a clear definition. Thus in each industries, different standards exist. And the standards influence the horizontal comparison (the comparison between companies) as well as the vertical comparison (the comparison between different time periods). Horizontal comparison is complicated due to different standards, and so is the situation in vertical comparison. In order to make the vertical comparison happen, we can fix the time period. Even though, to determine the selling price is still a problem, especially when we are talking about some expensive products which have bad sales records at their last selling prices. Under such circumstance, to estimate the selling price is really hard.

　　将要发生的成本、估计的销售费用及相关税费：

　　The estimated cost and relevant taxes:

　　由于是将要发生的，是估计的，有很多就存在模糊空间了，如预计工资涨了，水电费贵了，要在以前的的成本费用基础上增加一定的比率。

　　Because the cost is estimated, there are many fuzzy spaces need to be taken into consideration, such as the raise of the wages and other administration fees, so the cost and expenses increase accordingly.

　　成本、销售费用和相关税费，范围很不好确定。如成本包不包括为生产这个成品而产生的借款利息，销售费用除了销售一线的费用，包不包括相关的管理费用等等。不同的商品这些成本费用又如何分配等等。

　　It is hard to determine the range of the estimated cost and relevant expenses. Does the following cost include the loan interest? Do the related expenses include administrative expenses? What about the apportionment of the related expenses?

　　存货跌价准备，看上去很美，做起来一点都不轻松，存在着这么多操作空间，要达到“更公允地反映资产价值”这个目标效果也不明显。也许这就是会计估计的一个反映，是原则导向的一个体现。

　　Provision for obsolete stock is just looked beautiful. It is hard to determine provision for obsolete stock because of those fuzzy spaces. “Make the balance sheet fairer” is just an unachievable goal, and maybe it’s a reflection of accounting estimate and principle-based.