The inventory system maintains stock balance data by obtaining stock receipts from the purchase order system and stock issues from the order-entry system.

The delicate balance is almost impossible: Keep just enough in stock to service customers promptly and fulfill orders, yet not so much that product is left languishing on the shelf.

To assess the absolute risk of a crisis you need to estimate external-financing needs (defined as the sum of the current-account balance and the stock of short-term debt) over the next 12 months.