Inventory is habitually the largest and most important asset owned by a merchandising business. The inventory of some companies similar to car dealerships or jewellery stores may cost several times in excess of any other asset the company owns. Like an asset the inventory figure has a direct impact on reporting the solvency of the company in the balance sheet. Like a factor in determining cost of goods sold the inventory figure has a direct impact on the profitability of the company's operations as report in the income statement. Therefore the importance of the inventory figure should not be underestimated.