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1、SIMULTANEOUS DETERMINATION OFINVENTORIES AND ACCOUNTSRECEIVABLEBY DR. AYUB MEHARABSTRACT：The study presents a model based on 3,375 observations from industrial firms in Pakistan, and the Three-Stage Least Square (3SLS) technique has been applied for the estimation. The results indicate that the Econ
2、omic Order Quantity (EOQ) of inventories is not a constant magnitude; it is a variable closely associated with time trend. While the buffer stock element can be estimated through the constant term of an equation. Receivables from customers show a negative correlation with liquid assets and the cost
3、of production. Receivables are also shown to act as substitute for closing inventories.Key Words: 3SLS, Inventory Control, Economic Order Quantity,Buffer StockI. INTRODUCTIONWorking capital management is one of the important areas of financial planningand control. This broad area covers the manageme
4、nt and control of Cash andBanking Transactions, Short-term Investments, Receivables from Debtors, CreditAnalysis, Inventories and Current Liabilities. Inventories and Accounts Receivables are the two important components of Current Assets. In their work on cost accounting Mats, Curry, Frank and Khan
5、 (1982) estimated that inventories, on average, cover one third of the value of total assets in a balance sheet. Similarly, Receivables from Customers are another important element of the Current Assets. Inventories and receivables are illiquid assets and are important for the following reasons:(1)
6、They appear in the balance sheet at their historical value, but their realization depends on the present and future business environment and economic conditions.(2) They represent a significant share in total assets. Consequently, any change in the magnitude of these assets can affect the profitabil
7、ity and financial viability of a business.(3) The volume of sales revenue and profitability are directly correlated with the inventory-level and credit policies of a firm A soft credit policy with an interest on receivables is considered a cause of higher sales revenue and profit. Similarly, an opti
8、mal size of inventory is required for profit maximization. The Economic Order Quantity and Buffer Stock levels lead to minimum cost and thus to maximum profit.For these reasons optimal inventory and accounts receivables policies alwayshave been important element in the financial management of a comp
9、any, andvarious analyses recommend different options and tools. Relatively less importance has been given to the conversion of inventories into receivables. In order to help remedy this shortcoming, the present study has the following objectives:1) To identify the determinants of closing inventories
10、, and2) To test the hypothesis of inverse relation between trade debtors and closing inventories.The study is also important from the business cycles point of view. It is a common observation that a firm faces liquidity problem during recessions and hasexcess inventories at the beginning of a contra
11、ctionary period. During the recession, excess inventories lead to other problems, such as a decrease in the market price of the product and a decline in production and employment levels etc. We test the hypothesis that a firm can sell its excess inventories if it can afford to increase its receivabl
12、es. Although, this will not solve the problem of liquidity it may, however, protect a firm from the risk of price shocks and improve its profitability.II. THE ACCOUNTING INSIGHTSWe adopt an econometric approach in the study. However, it is useful to recall the main insights of financial accounting o
13、n which most of the models in corporate finance tend to rely. The accounting and the economic approaches differ fundamentally in the literature. The accounting studies focus attention on the mechanism of the flow of funds (the origins of the funds and their use). While, ineconomic theory attention h
14、as been paid to the motivation of investors and managers. Economics considers the rationale implied by the application and use of funds. Consequently, studies by economists tend to answer questions that are not usually addressed by the accounting literature. Various companies have different accounti
15、ng policies. Particularly in Depreciation Accounting, Inventories Valuation, and Bad Debts Estimates, the policies may differ significantly. The effects of this variability have been minimized in the study by converting corporate accounts into The Uniform Accounting System 1. The procedure, which is
16、 described in the forthcoming section, is related to the literature on “economic tests”. The structure of the complete model proposed in this paper is given in figure: 1. This figure shows the inter dependency and relations between dependent and independent variables. Figure 3 in the next section sh
17、ow the quantification of the relations between those variables.Under the financial accounting framework, trade credits are classified in thefollowing two categories:1) Accounts Receivable and2) Notes Receivable.However, we merged both the categories into a single aggregate, due to theconstraints on
18、the data available for this study. It is noteworthy that accountsreceivable and notes receivable have similar characteristics in financial theory.They are treated differently in connection with financial controls and legalconsiderations. Similarly, accounts payable and notes payable also have identi
19、calfinancial characteristics.a) The Objectives of Inventories Holding:The traditional analysis of inventory-holding decisions is based on the relationbetween inventory and sales. Among the objectives of the inventory decisionexamined in the subject literature, the following stand out: 1) Buffer stoc
20、ks for unanticipated expansion in demand:Textbooks on production management and operation research refer to this objective of inventory holding in discussing the techniques of production planning. Inventory can be maintained to meet incoming orders in case of an unanticipated expansion in demand. Th
21、is case highlights the cost-benefit trade off in terms of inventory-holding costs versus the cost of foregone sales and goodwill. To optimize this choice, part of the goods produced are held as inventory. This is known as a buffer stock.2) Inventories for smooth production:This objective is frequent
22、ly discussed in the literature on cost accounting. Inventory can be held in order to provide for smoothness in the production process. The optimal stock for this objective is known as Economic Order Quantity (EOQ). The main problem of inventory control is balancing ordering costs (which decline in t
23、otal as stocks increase) against carrying costs (which increase as stocks increase), in order to calculate the Economic Ordering Quantity (EOQ) which minimize total costs. Ordering costs include clerical costs, stationery, postages, telephone etc; carrying costs include insurance, rent and interest
24、foregone. The Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) depends on the time required to receive the material after issuance of a purchase order. However, the opportunity cost of interest on investment in the inventories is also an important factor in the inventory holding decision.3) Inventories as some desired
25、 ratio to sales:This concept is exemplified by the accelerator principle in macroeconomics. Anincrease in inventory leads the growth in demand. According to this principle theinventory holding of the year will be determined by expected sales in the nextyear.4) The speculative factors in inventories:
26、Another strand of analysis has emphasized the speculative element in theinventory decision. According to this, one of the major objectives of the inventorypolicy is to capitalize an anticipated price changes. This factor is pertains mainlyto industries where product prices experience wide fluctuatio
27、ns. It also pertains tocases of high input price volatility. Inventories of precious metals, coffee, cotton,and tea are the best examples of this. If an industry utilizes imported raw materials, inventory holdings will also depend on speculative factors with respect to exchange rates. Similarly, the
28、 speculative factor also applies in the export oriented industries. A leading hypothesis in this connection concerns the importance of spot and forward exchange rates, transport costs, and the preponderance of domestic over foreign sales by affiliated companies. The importance of exchange rates sugg
29、ests that the speculative role often attributed to inventories may have a significant international dimension (Stern: 1993)The importance of this dimension is bolstered by the finding (Stern: 1993), thatthe effect of just-in-time inventory policies, which have driven US inventory salesratio to histo
30、rically low levels, is not in evidence in the year-to-year inventory-sales ratio of the foreign affiliates of US parent firms during the 1982- 87 span.(b) The Determinants of Receivables:Receivables are another important part of the current assets. The individual sizeand the total magnitude of recei
31、vables depends the nature and volume of thebusiness. There are, however, some common factors, which determine the valueof receivables in a companys balance sheet. In the accounting literature, sales andcredit policy are emphasized as the major determinants of accounts receivable.III. THE DATA AND RE
32、SEARCH METHODThe study is based on three behavioral equations. Closing inventories(CLSTOCK), accounts receivable (DEBTRS) and sales revenue (SALES) are thedependent variables of the equations. The equations are estimated by a Three-Stage Least Square (3SLS) estimation technique.The model is estimate
33、d from the pooled data of the annual audited accounts of225 companies listed on the Karachi Stock Exchange. The accounts cover the period of 1980 to 1994, giving us 3,375 observations (225 companies and 15 years). The data for the model have been extracted from the annual reports of the listed compa
34、nies. We applied the standard definitions of accounting variables as mentioned by the State bank of Pakistan in the Balance Sheet Analysis (State Bank of Pakistan: 1995-96, 19990-91, 1986-87, 1982-83).All the data are in million of Pakistani rupees. D6 and D7 are dummy variables. Time is a trend var
35、iable, taking 1980 as one and so on. The description and abbreviated names of the variables are listed in table: 2. The justification for theirinclusion is discussed below:A) Inventories:The specification of closing inventories (CLSTOCK) is not a simple task.Traditional studies in cost accounting su
36、ggest that Economic Order Quantity(EOQ), and Buffer Stock levels are the most appropriate considerations ininventory-holding decision. These considerations are based on the sales volume ofa product. We therefore, hypothesized that sales volume (SALES) is one of themajor factors of closing inventorie
37、s (CLSTOCK). A higher amount of sales(SALES) implies a higher volume of closing inventories (CLSTOCK). It is alsohypothesized that receivable from debtors (DBTRS) is a substitute for closinginventories (CLSTOCK). In the presence of a higher amount of receivables(DBTRS) the volume of closing inventor
38、ies (CLSTOCK) would thus be lower.The time trend (TIME) is also an important factor in determining closinginventories (CLSTOCK). Time trend indicates the growth in the magnitude ofinventories (CLSTOCK), over the years. We assumed that time is a proxy of theimprovement in managerial skills, storage f
39、acilities, and change in the EconomicOrder Quantity (EOQ) levels. The other determinants like ABC cost distributionmethod 2 and inventory control levels 3 have been ignored and it is assumed thattheir effects would be captured by the explanatory variables Time and Sales.We establish a cause and effe
40、ct relation and assume that the Economic OrderQuantity (EOQ) is not a fixed parameter, but a variable instead. The futuremagnitude of inventories is independent of their historical volume.B) Receivables:We hypothesize that reserves and surplus funds (SURPLUS), short-term liabilities(CURLIBL), liquid
41、 assets (LASST) and sales revenue (SALES) bear a direct relation to the receivables from debtors (DBTRS). All of these lead to an improvement in the liquidity position of a firm and a good liquidity position leads to a soft credit policy. Mian and Smith (1992) also include sales revenue (SALES) in t
42、heir equation explaining receivables from debtors (DBTRS), as a proxy for the market power of any given firm. It also stands to reason that higher cost of production (CSTPRD) and depreciation expenditures (DEPRCT) are a cause of lower sales on credit.We have seen that trade debt (DEBTRS) depend upon
43、 the sales volume and creditpolicy of a firm. So far as sales revenues (SALES) are concerned, we test theirrelation with receivables (DEBTRS) and find sales to be a significant explanatoryvariable. We also hypothesize that trade credit policy is directly related to the costof production (CSTPRD) and
44、 to the pattern of corporate financing. We observethat externally generated employed capital - long-term debt and paid-up capital do not have a significant correlation with receivables (DBTRS), while, thecumulative balance of retained earnings (SURPLUS), as well as current liabilities(CURLIBL), have
45、 a significant positive relation with the accounts receivable. Wehypothesize that liquid assets (LASST) bear a negative relation to accountreceivable (DBTRS). This hypothesis is confirmed by the results of our study.Mian and Smith (1992) have analyzed the various attitudes towards trade credit.They
46、identify sales revenue (market power), tax advantages, scale economies(production volume) and organizational set up as the factors determining accountsreceivable. They suggest that there are several non-mutually exclusive incentivesfor a firm to extend trade credit to its customers, rather than requ
47、iring cash sales.Trade credit is more likely to be extended if the additional earnings on a creditsale as compared to cash on delivery (COD) are higher than the cost of borrowing. In the present study we assume that the producer would prefer to sale on cash basis in the presence of higher cost of pr
48、oduction (CSTPRD).C) Sales as an Endogenous Variable:The factors determining sales revenue are complicated, varied, and sales aresubject to fluctuations. Therefore, a detailed estimation of sales revenue (SALES)is not here attempted. However, since we are mainly concerned with the creditpolicies of
49、a firm, and in order to simplify the model, we assume that salesrevenues (SALES) are largely explained by the time trend (TIME). Hence, forsimplification of the model it is assumed that time is a proxy for all the relevantexplanatory variables of demand i.e., population, season, income, and demandpatterns
