Why aren't investment costs included in fixed cost in a form of amortization or depreciation costs

Question

Andrea · Accepted Answer

Hi,

that would be an accounting view (investment going to the BS and then depreciating in the IS).
But when you look at NPVs you just look at cash outlays, e.g. investment in Year0 and fixed + variable cost in year 1,2,3 ...

Deleted · Answer

Hi there,

I guess that"s somewhat a matter of accounting definitions. As a general rule costs get recorded in the P&L and Investments in the balance sheet. Investments can be depreciated over a number of years to recognise their loss of value with the time. Costs are directly recognised as incurred in the P&L.

I hope this helps.

Best, Fernando