accounting team gathered the following information.

Other key budgeted and actual information:

Actual units produced: $25,300.$

Actual DM quantity purchased: $79,000$ pounds at $$4\mathrm{.}10$ per pound.

Actual DM quantity used: $75,000$ pounds.

Actual DL hours used: $31,200$ hours at $$14\mathrm{.}25$ per hour.

Actual machine hours used: $48,800.$

Actual variable$-$MOH cost was $$166,300$; budgeted variable$-$MOH cost was $$161,000.$

Actual fixed$-$MOH cost was $$320,000$; budgeted fixed$-$MOH cost was $$312,800.$

Required

a$.$ Conduct a complete variance analysis for all four main product costs $($DM$,$ DL$,$ variable$-$MOH price and efficiency variances, and fixed$-$MOH price and volume variances$).$ Specify the amount and sign of each variance.

b$.$ Record journal entries for the following transactions using standard costing.

The purchase of DM on account.

The transfer of DM into production.

The accrual of DL cost$.$

Actual MOH cost incurred as follows.

Variable$-$MOH costs included $$100,000$ of accrued indirect labor and $$66,300$ of accrued utility cost.

Fixed$-$MOH costs included $$200,000$ of depreciation on plant assets and $$120,000$ of accrued supervisor salaries.

The application of variable$-$MOH and fixed$-$MOH cost to production.

Recognition of specific variable$-$MOH and fixed$-$MOH variances, when closing the respective MOH control accounts.

Completion of production on $25,300$ units $($there were no units still in process at the end of the year$).$

The sale of $18,900$ units on account for $$80$ each.

d$.$ Explain what any ending balances in the T$-$accounts, from part $($c$),$ reflect in terms of types of resources and types of costs. $($Hint: Do they reflect actual costs Standard costs? Actual quantities? Standard quantities?$)$

E$-$Given the transactions to$-$date, how many variance accounts have existing balances? What are Dexter$$s options for dealing with these variances? Record the journal entry to write off all variances directly to COGS. Explain the purpose for writing off these variances.

F$-$How much will Dexter report for its adjusted COGS? What is its gross margin percentage taking this adjusted COGS into account? Did the company meet its $40\%$ gross margin goal? How well did the production department manage its costs?

G$-$Write a memo from the accounting supervisor to the accounting staff explaining the costs and benefits of using standard costing. Be sure to address the following question: At year$-$end, if all variances are to be written off to adjust COGS back to what it would have been had actual costs been recorded originally, what$$s the point of using standard costing?