The income statement, also known as the profit and loss statement, is an important tool as it calculates the profitability or loss of a business.

Income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements. If you're running a business, you probably have some knowledge of basic financial statements and how to use them.

For example, a company's financial statements for the month of September will contain a balance sheet as of September 30th and an income statement for the entire month of September.