A certified public accountant is one who has earned a license in his or her state that attests to a high degree of skill, training, and experience. In addition to passing an accounting examination, a candidate must have the proper business experience, education, and moral character in order to qualify for the license. The letters CPA are commonly used and generally recognized to be the abbreviation for the title Certified Public Accountant.
For manufactured goods, direct costs also include raw materials, labor, and production expenses. Other costs, such as transportation and advertising, are not included in COGS. To calculate COGS, beginning inventory is added to current period purchases, and ending inventory is then deducted.
BREAKING DOWN 'Cost Of Goods Sold-COGS'. COGS is the cost of creating the products that a company sells; therefore, the only costs included in the measure are those that are directly tied to the production of the products.