资产负债表是指反映企事业单位（以下简称“单位”）在某一特定日期财务状况的会计报表。它是根据“资产=负债+所有者权益”这一会计恒等式，依照一定的分类标准和编排顺序，将单位在特定日期的全部资产、负债和所有者权益项目进行适当分类、汇总、排列后编制而成的。由于报表中的数据体现的是特定时刻的财务状况，因此资产负债表属于静态报表。

The balance sheet is a financial statement showing the financial position of an organization or business unit (hereinafter referred to as the "entity") at a particular date. It is prepared based on the accounting equation of “Assets = Liabilities + Owners' Equity”, by classifying, summarizing and listing all assets, liabilities and owners' equity items of an entity at a specific point in time according to some classification standards and order of presentation. As the data on the balance sheet represents the financial position at a particular point in time, the balance sheet is also regarded as a status statement.

资产负债表反映了单位在某一特定日期所拥有或控制的经济资源（资产）、所承担的现时义务（负债）和所有者对净资产的要求权（所有者权益）。通过资产负债表，报表的使用者可以一目了然地看出单位所拥有或者控制的资产总量及其结构；可以了解单位某一特定日期的权益结构，根据负债总额及其结构，分析单位目前与未来需要支付债务的数额，清楚地看出单位的资金来源及其构成情况。通过对资产负债表有关内容的分析，报表的使用者可以全面了解单位资产的流动性情况，分析单位的债务偿还能力，从而为未来的经济决策提供参考信息。

The balance sheet shows the economic resources (assets) owned or controlled by an entity at a particular date, the current obligations (liabilities) assumed and the owner's claim to net assets (owner's equity). The balance sheet allows the users of financial statements to have a clear snapshot of the total amount of assets owned or controlled by the entity and their structure; to obtain an understanding of the equity structure of the entity at a particular date; to analyze the amount of present and future debts to be paid by the entity based on the total amount of liabilities and their structure; and to have a clear picture of the sources of funds of the entity and their makeup. By analyzing the relevant contents of the balance sheet, the users of financial statements can have a complete understanding of the liquidity of the entity's assets and analyze its solvency for debts repayment, thus gaining a reference information for their future economic decisions.

资产负债表的格式主要有账户式和报告式两种，我国企事业单位的资产负债表采用账户式结构（见下表1-1），分为左右两方。左方列示资产项目，反映全部资产的分布形态，按资产的流动性大小排列，流动性大的资产如“货币资产”等排在前面，流动性小的资产如“长期股权投资”、“固定资产”等排在后面。右方列示负债及所有者权益项目，反映全部负债和所有者权益的内容及构成情况，一般按求偿权先后顺序排列，“短期借款”、“应付账款”等需要在一年以内或者长于一年的一个正常营业周期内偿还的流动负债排在前面，“长期借款”等在一年以上才需偿还的非流动负债排在中间，在单位清算之前不需要偿还的所有者权益排在后面。资产负债表左右双方平衡，资产各项目的合计等于负债和所有者权益各项目的合计，即“资产=负债+所有者权益”。

There are essentially two types of formats for a balance sheet: account form and report form. Most enterprises and other organizations in China adopt an account form for presentation of a balance sheet (see the sample form below), which is divided into left and right sides. Assets are listed on the left side, showing a layout of all asset items in the order of liquidity, with more liquid asset items such as "monetary assets" listed at the top position and less liquid asset items such as "long-term equity investments" and "fixed assets" listed at the bottom position. Liabilities and owners' equity are listed on the right side, showing the content and makeup of all liabilities and owners' equity, which are generally listed in the order of claims, with the current liabilities such as "short-term borrowings" and "accounts payable" required to be repaid within one year or within a normal operating cycle of more than one year listed at the top position, the non-current liabilities such as "long-term borrowings" required to be repaid in more than one year listed in the middle position, and with the owners' equity not required to be repaid until the entity is liquidated listed at the bottom position. The balance sheet is balanced on the left and right sides, and the total amount of all the asset items equals the total amount of all the liability items and the owners' equity items, i.e., “Assets = Liabilities + Owners’ Equity”.