What kinds of questions about future cash flows do investors and creditors attempt to answer with information in the income statement?
The income statement is important because it provides investors and creditors with information that helps them predict the amount, timing, and uncertainty of future cash flows. It helps investors and creditors predict future cash flows in a number of different ways. First, investors and creditors can use the information on the income statement to evaluate the past performance of the company. Second, the income statement helps users of the financial statements to determine the risk (level of uncertainty) of income—revenues, expenses, gains, and losses—and highlights the relationship among these various components.
It should be emphasized that the income statement is used by parties other than investors and creditors. For example, customers can use the income statement to determine a company's ability to provide needed goods or services, unions examine earnings closely as a basis for salary discussions, and the government uses the income statements of companies as a basis for formulating tax and economic policy.
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