Rev. Rul. 98-62, 1998-51 I.R.B. 4.
Internal Revenue Service
Revenue Ruling
LIFO; PRICE INDEXES; DEPARTMENT STORES
Published: December 21, 1998
Section 472. - Last-in, First-out Inventories, 26 CFR 1.472-1: Last-in, first- out inventories.
LIFO; price indexes; department stores. The October 1998 Bureau of Labor Statistics price indexes are accepted for use by department stores employing the retail inventory and last-in, first-out inventory methods for valuing inventories for tax years ended on, or with reference to, October 31, 1998.
The following Department Store Inventory Price Indexes for October 1998 were issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The indexes are accepted by the Internal Revenue Service, under § 1.472-1(k) of the Income Tax Regulations and Rev. Proc. 86-46, 1986-2 C.B. 739, for appropriate application to inventories of department stores employing the retail inventory and last-in, first-out inventory methods for tax years ended on, or with reference to, October 31, 1998.
The Department Store Inventory Price Indexes are prepared on a national basis and include (a) 23 major groups of departments, (b) three special combinations of the major groups--soft goods, durable goods, and miscellaneous goods, and (c) a store total, which covers all departments, including some not listed separately, except for the following: candy, food, liquor, tobacco, and contract departments.
BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS, DEPARTMENT STORE INVENTORY PRICE
INDEXES BY
DEPARTMENT GROUPS
(January 1941 = 100, unless otherwise noted)
Groups Oct.
1997 Oct. 1998 Percent
Change
from
Oct.
1997 to
Oct.
1998
[FN1]
1. Piece Goods .............................
534.5
548.9 2.7
2. Domestics and Draperies .................
638.4
637.5 -0.1
3. Women's and Children's Shoes ............
672.2
679.2 1.0
4. Men's Shoes .............................
910.2
921.6 1.3
5. Infants' Wear ...........................
615.5
640.2 4.0
6. Women's Underwear .......................
560.1
572.6 2.2
7. Women's Hosiery .........................
301.6
308.9 2.4
8. Women's and Girls' Accessories ..........
541.7
551.6 1.8
9. Women's Outerwear and Girls'
Wear ......................................
431.3
423.5 -1.8
10. Men's Clothing ..........................
625.3
620.1 -0.8
11. Men's Furnishings .......................
601.0
607.8 1.1
12. Boys' Clothing and Furnishings ..........
505.9
521.0 3.0
13. Jewelry .................................
995.5
982.7 -1.3
14. Notions .................................
844.4
757.6 -10.3
15. Toilet Articles and Drugs ...............
916.4
946.4 3.3
16. Furniture and Bedding ...................
666.2
673.7 1.1
17. Floor Coverings .........................
578.2
601.0 3.9
18. Housewares ..............................
812.1
817.1 0.6
19. Major Appliances ........................
243.3
238.3 -2.1
20. Radio and Television .....................
74.5 70.6 -5.2
21. Recreation and Education [FN2] ..........
108.6
102.8 -5.3
22. Home Improvements [FN2] .................
132.7
129.5 -2.4
23. Auto Accessories [FN2] ..................
107.9
107.9 0.0
Groups 1 - 15: Soft Goods ...................
610.1
612.7 0.4
Groups 21 - 23: Misc. Goods [FN2] ...........
111.6
107.3 -3.9
Store Total [FN3] .........................
558.5
556.9 -0.3
FN1 Absence of a minus sign before percentage change in this column signifies
price increase.
FN2 Indexes on a January 1986 = 100 base.
FN3 The store total index covers all departments, including some not listed
separately, except for the following: candy, food, liquor, tobacco, and
contract departments.
DRAFTING INFORMATION
The principal author of this revenue ruling is Stan Michaels of the Office of Assistant Chief Counsel (Income Tax and Accounting). For further information regarding this revenue ruling, contact Mr. Michaels on (202) 622- 4970 (not a toll-free call).
Rev. Rul. 98-62, 1998-51 I.R.B. 4.