ABSTRACT
Understanding the accounting principles governing financial statements will help you assess your company's performance and plan for the future. There are certain major business assets, such as vehicles, office equipment, machinery, and buildings, that businesses must own or lease in order to operate. These are all tangible assets with a long life. On the balance sheet, long-lived assets usually appear under the heading “property, plant, and equipment” (PP&E) and are sometimes called fixed assets. Assets that will give service for no more than several years are considered capital assets.
