What is a balance (balance sheet)?

In short

The balance sheet shows the business's assets (what it owns) and liabilities plus equity (what it owes and what the owners have) at a point in time. The two sides are always equal.

In practice

Where the income statement shows the year's earnings, the balance sheet shows the financial position — the values, debt and savings.

Related terms

• Aktiver (assets)
• Passiver (liabilities & equity)
• Egenkapital (equity)
• See every term in the dictionary

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