Adjusting entries are accounting journal entries that convert a company's accounting records to the accrual basis of accounting. An adjusting journal entry is typically made just prior to issuing a company's financial statements. To demonstrate the need for an accounting adjusting entry let's assume that a company borrowed money from its bank on December 1, 2013 and that the company's accounting period ends on December 31. The bank loan specifies that the first interest payment on the loan will be due on March 1, 2014. This means that the company's accounting records as of December 31 do not contain any payment to the bank for the interest the company incurred from December 1 through December 31. (Of course the loan is costing the company interest expense every day, but the actual payment for the interest will not occur until March 1.) For the company's December income statement to accurately report the company's profitability, it must include all of the ...