Final answer:
To find the estimated cost of the inventory on May 31 using the retail method, we need to calculate the cost-to-retail ratio and multiply it by the cost of goods available for sale.
Step-by-step explanation:
To find the estimated cost of the inventory on May 31 using the retail method, we need to calculate the cost-to-retail ratio. The cost-to-retail ratio is determined by dividing the total cost of inventory by the total retail value of inventory. In this case, the May 1 inventory has a cost of $125,000 and a retail value of $166,667, giving us a cost-to-retail ratio of 0.75.
Next, we calculate the cost of goods available for sale by adding the cost of the May 1 inventory to the cost of purchases made between May 1-31, which is $360,000.
Finally, we multiply the cost of goods available for sale by the cost-to-retail ratio to get the estimated cost of the inventory on May 31, which is $360,000 x 0.75 = $270,000.