What you’ll learn4 learning objectivesChoose one objective for a focused lesson, or study the complete topic.5.4.1Cost information• Cost information- the need for accurate cost information- different types of costs: fixed, variable, direct and indirectSyllabus objective5.4.2Costing approaches• Approaches to costing: full, contribution- the differences between full and contribution costing- the uses and limitations of the full costing method- the nature of the technique of contribution costing- the difference between contribution and profit- the limitations of contribution costing- situations in which contribution costing would be and would not be usedSyllabus objective5.4.3Cost information uses• Uses of cost information- cost information for decision-making purposes, e.g. average, marginal, total costs- how costs can be used for pricing decisions- how costs can be used to monitor and improve business performance, including using cost information to calculate profits- contribution costing as a means to help make special order decisionsSyllabus objective5.4.4Break-even analysis• Break-even analysis- the meaning and importance of break-even analysis- calculation and interpretation of break-even level of output, contribution, margin of safety and level of profit (in numeric and graphic form)- the uses and limitations of break-even analysisSyllabus objective