Which financial statement would you refer to for a company's earnings over a period?

The income statement is the financial statement that reports a company's earnings over a specified period. It provides a summary of revenues, expenses, and ultimately net income or loss for the period being examined. This statement is essential for assessing a company's operational performance and profitability, as it reflects how much money the company has earned (revenues) and how much it has spent (expenses) in that timeframe.

The balance sheet, on the other hand, presents a snapshot of a company's financial position at a single point in time, detailing assets, liabilities, and equity. It does not cover a period like the income statement does. The cash flow statement focuses on the inflows and outflows of cash within the same period and does not directly indicate earnings. Finally, the equity statement, typically known as the statement of changes in equity, illustrates changes in the ownership interest in the company, including transactions like issuing shares or paying dividends, but it doesn't provide a summary of earnings over a period.