Turnover, liquidity, clearing rates

International business relationships are part of everyday life today. This applies, for example, to purchasing components in the USA or exporting our own products there. For financial accounting, this means that customs duties are not just mandatory accounting exercises, but have a direct impact on liquidity, costing and management.

Why customs duties are more than just a “cost block”

Customs and import duties have a direct impact on the cost structure and therefore also on the calculation of cost rates. Especially when companies use international supply chains, it is crucial to make the additional burdens transparent. Only then can controllers and accounting managers decide whether products or services are still profitable. And thus also whether pricing strategies need to be adjusted.

The role of modern accounting software

This is where Portolan comes into play. A good solution should not only fulfill the mandatory tasks – i.e. correct posting – but also deliver real added value:

• Transparency in liquidity planning: What impact do upcoming customs payments have on short-term liquidity?

• Analysis of clearing rates: How do tariffs change internal transfer prices between departments or companies?

• Sales analysis with critical countries: What sales are made with business partners from the USA – both in purchasing and in sales? What dependencies exist and what risks does this pose for the company?

• Reporting for management and controlling: Clearly prepared evaluations that not only provide figures, but also create a basis for decision-making.

Practical example: USA as a “critical market”

A company purchases components from the USA that are used in projects with tight margins. At the same time, the company sells its own products to the USA. The targeted use of sales analyses in financial accounting makes it possible to recognize this:

• What proportion of the purchasing volume comes from the USA?

• What revenues are generated in sales with US customers?

• To what extent does a change in customs or trade conditions affect the overall result?

This transparency helps those responsible to identify risks at an early stage and develop alternative courses of action. This can be done, for example, by diversifying suppliers or through a more targeted pricing policy.

From duty to freestyle

For many companies, customs issues are initially a compulsory task: recording receipts, booking duties correctly, submitting declarations on time. But those who stop at this point are missing valuable opportunities.

With the right evaluations, for example, you can recognize:

• Which products cause particularly high additional costs due to customs duties?

• Which customers are heavily dependent on exports to the USA – and how does this affect their contribution margin?

• Which suppliers make the company vulnerable because they source almost exclusively from a “critical country” such as the USA?

Such analyses go far beyond mere booking obligations. They provide controlling and management with concrete control impulses: for example, for price negotiations, the evaluation of project margins or the decision to establish alternative procurement sources.

Conclusion and invitation to exchange ideas

Customs duties and international taxes will continue to accompany financial accounting in the future – and they tend to become more complex due to geopolitical developments. Those who rely solely on manual evaluations will lose valuable time and decision-making quality. With modern accounting software, these challenges can not only be mastered, but actively used for management purposes.

Our consultants will be happy to support you in developing specific solution scenarios and evaluation options for your company. Simply contact us – we look forward to exchanging ideas.