OTHER TECHNIQUES OF COST MEASUREMENT

Other techniques of cost measurement
(a) Instead of actual, the standard costs may be taken as cost of inventory provided standards fairly approximate the actual. Such standards (for finished or partly finished units) should be set in the light of normal levels of material consumption, labour efficiency and capacity utilisation. The standards so set should be regularly reviewed and if necessary, be revised to reflect current conditions.

(b) In retail business, where a large number of rapidly changing items are traded, the actual costs of items may be difficult to determine. The units dealt by a retailer however, are usually sold for similar gross margins and a retail method to determine cost in such retail trades makes use of the fact. By this method, cost of inventory is determined by reducing sale value of unsold stock by appropriate average percentage of gross margin.