Description Elements Balance Sheet or Income Statement (a) The increase in assets, or decrease in liabilities, resulting from business activities carried out to earn profit. (b) Resources controlled by a business that have the potential to produce economic benefits. (c) The owner's claim on the residual assets of the company. (d) Present obligations that are expected to result in an outflow of economic resources as a result of a past transaction. (e) The cost of resources consumed or services used in the company's business activities