现金经营周期是什么意思？

中文

现金经营周期，也称为现金转换周期，是指企业从采购原材料、生产产品到销售产品并收回现金所需的时间。它是评估企业运营效率及现金流管理的重要指标。现金经营周期的计算公式通常为：现金经营周期 = 存货周转天数 + 应收账款周转天数 - 应付账款周转天数。

存货周转天数反映了企业库存管理的效率，即从采购原材料到产品销售出去所需的时间。应收账款周转天数则代表企业销售产品后，等待客户付款的时间。而应付账款周转天数则是企业支付供应商款项的周期。将这三者结合起来，现金经营周期便能够展现企业从投入到产出，再到现金回收的完整过程。

一个健康的现金经营周期意味着企业能够在较短的时间内将现金转化为产品，再通过销售转化为更多的现金，同时保持较低的存货和应收账款水平，以及合理的应付账款周期。这样的企业通常运营效率高，资金流动性好，能够更好地应对市场变化和风险。

然而，过短的现金经营周期也可能意味着企业面临资金紧张的问题，如过度依赖短期融资或频繁出现现金流断裂的情况。因此，企业在管理现金经营周期时，需要综合考虑运营效率、资金成本和风险控制等因素，确保企业稳健运营。

英文

Cash conversion cycle, also known as cash operating cycle, refers to the time required for a business to purchase raw materials, produce products, sell them, and collect cash. It is a crucial metric for assessing a business's operational efficiency and cash flow management. The formula for calculating cash conversion cycle is typically: Cash Conversion Cycle = Inventory Turnover Days + Accounts Receivable Turnover Days - Accounts Payable Turnover Days.

Inventory Turnover Days reflect the efficiency of a business's inventory management, which is the time it takes from purchasing raw materials to selling the products. Accounts Receivable Turnover Days represent the time a business waits for customers to pay after selling products. Accounts Payable Turnover Days, on the other hand, refer to the period in which a business pays its suppliers. By combining these three factors, the cash conversion cycle reveals the complete process of a business from input to output and cash recovery.

A healthy cash conversion cycle indicates that a business is able to convert cash into products quickly, further convert them into more cash through sales, while maintaining low levels of inventory and accounts receivable, as well as a reasonable accounts payable cycle. Such businesses typically have high operational efficiency, good cash flow liquidity, and are better able to cope with market changes and risks.

However, an excessively short cash conversion cycle may also suggest that a business faces cash flow tightness issues, such as over-reliance on short-term financing or frequent cash flow disruptions. Therefore, when managing the cash conversion cycle, businesses need to consider factors such as operational efficiency, capital cost, and risk control to ensure stable operations.