The calculation of the financial cycle as a basis for planning and managing the cash flows of the enterprise

The process of planning and managing cash flows of an economic entity is an important component of the entire management system of its financial activities. The main goal of managing the cash flows of an economic entity is to ensure financial equilibrium, which consists in balancing the volumes of receipts and expenditures of funds, as well as their synchronization in time. Currently, one of the pressing problems of any economic entity is the growth of accounts receivable and payable. Thus, accounts receivable that are not repaid on time leads to the diversion of funds from the turnover of an economic entity, and, consequently, to the emergence of a number of problems, such as a shortage of funds, an increase in the risk of lack of payments on obligations, etc. The financial stability of a business largely depends on the flow of funds necessary for its normal functioning, which is why the issues of managing and controlling receivables and payables are very important. In this regard, the calculation of the financial cycle acts as a kind of indicator of money turnover, a way to assess the effectiveness of management of receivables and payables. This article is devoted to the management of cash flows of a light industry enterprise based on the optimization of the duration of its financial cycle. The article discusses the main components of the financial cycle, and also provides a methodology for its calculation on the example of a light industry enterprise. The main directions of reducing the financial cycle of the enterprise can be attributed to: acceleration of the turnover of inventories; acceleration of the turnover of receivables; an uncritical slowdown in the turnover of accounts payable. The results of the study demonstrate an economic effect, which is an additional profit that an economic entity can receive as a result of additional extraction of a part of financial resources due to a reduction in the duration of the financial cycle.