inventaires

Inventaires refer to formal listings of assets owned by an organization at a specific date. In accounting, logistics, and related fields, inventaires document stocks of goods, raw materials, work in progress, finished products, and other tangible assets, as well as certain intangible items when relevant. The term is used in French-language contexts to encompass both the act of counting and the resulting record, and it may appear in discussions of financial reporting, taxation, and internal control.

Common types of inventories include raw materials, work in progress, finished goods, and merchandise held for resale. Additional categories may cover spare parts, consumables, and certain intangible items in specific industries. In museums, libraries, and archives, inventaires describe cataloged collections and holdings. The exact scope depends on organizational needs, industry, and regulatory requirements.

The inventory process typically combines counting or reconciling physical stock with accounting records. Physical counts, audits, and cycle counting are common methods to ensure accuracy and identify discrepancies. Valuation methods vary by jurisdiction and standard, with FIFO (first-in, first-out), LIFO (last-in, first-out), and weighted average being standard approaches for costed inventories. Under many accounting frameworks, inventories are valued at the lower of cost and net realizable value, where net realizable value is the estimated selling price minus costs to complete and sell.

Inventaries support financial reporting, budgeting, and operational decisions. They enable stock control, optimize production planning, and measure performance through metrics such as inventory turnover and days of inventory on hand. Advances in technology, including ERP systems, barcode scanning, and RFID, have streamlined inventory counting and valuation, reducing errors and improving traceability.