Final answer:
In a Cost-Volume-Profit graph, the vertical axis often represents total revenue and total costs, which depend on the levels of output or sales volume plotted on the horizontal axis.
Step-by-step explanation:
When constructing a Cost-Volume-Profit (CVP) graph, the vertical axis represents the total revenue and total costs. In general terms of graph construction, the vertical axis is referred to as the y-axis, and it typically represents the dependent variable in the relationship being graphed. In the context of a CVP graph, the 'y' on this axis could represent the company's total costs or total revenues, depending on what is being measured against the levels of output or sales volume (the independent variable) which is plotted on the horizontal axis.
In a CVP (Cost-Volume-Profit) graph, the vertical axis represents the dependent variable, which is usually the profit or cost.
For example, if you are graphing the cost of producing a certain number of items, the vertical axis would represent the cost and the horizontal axis would represent the number of items produced.
Therefore, the vertical axis in a CVP graph represents the variable that is being observed or measured, such as profit or cost.