Checking an item’s performance in Business Central used to require running reports or exporting data to Excel. With 2026 release wave 1 (version 28.0), the Item Card includes a new Item Statistics action that opens a page with financial and performance metrics, giving you a quick overview without leaving the item record.
When Copilot’s Summarize with Copilot capability is enabled, the page also generates a natural language summary of the item’s performance.
Open the Item Statistics Page
- Search for Items using
Alt + Q. - Open the Item Card for the item you want to review.
- Select the Item Statistics action.
The Item Statistics page shows inventory metrics at the top and sales performance metrics organized by time period below.
Inventory Metrics
The page displays two inventory-level KPIs:
| Metric | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Current Inventory Value | The sum of Cost Amount (Actual) + Cost Amount (Expected) on posted value entries for this item. Shown in local currency. |
| Expired Inventory Value | The value of inventory with an expiration date before the work date. Only applies to items with item tracking and expiration dates enabled. |
The expired inventory value helps identify obsolete stock that may need write-downs or disposal. If your items do not use expiration dates, this metric will not show data.
Sales Metrics by Time Period
The sales section shows four time period columns, each with multiple metrics:
| Time period | What it covers |
|---|---|
| This Fiscal Period | The current accounting period in the fiscal year |
| This Fiscal Year | The current fiscal year to date |
| Last Fiscal Year | The previous fiscal year |
| Lifetime | All transactions since the item was created |
For each period, the following metrics are calculated:
Sales Growth Rate (%)
Compares the current period to the prior period to show demand trends. Calculated as:
(Sales in current period - Sales in prior period) / Sales in prior period
A positive value indicates growth. A negative value indicates declining sales.
Net Sales (LCY)
Actual revenue after returns and discounts. Calculated as:
Total sales - Total returns - Total discounts
Gross Margin (%)
Shows profitability by comparing revenue to cost of goods sold. Calculated as:
(Net Sales - COGS) / Net Sales
A higher percentage means better profitability on this item.
Return Rate (%)
Monitors product quality and customer satisfaction. Calculated as:
Returned Quantity / Total Sold Quantity
A lower percentage indicates fewer returns.
Enable Copilot Summary
When the Summarize with Copilot capability is turned on, the Item Statistics page includes a natural language summary of the item’s performance. This summary highlights trends and notable data points from the KPIs displayed on the page.
To enable this capability:
- Search for Copilot & AI Capabilities using
Alt + Q. - Find and enable the Summarize with Copilot feature.
The summary updates automatically when you open the Item Statistics page.
When to Use Item Statistics vs Analysis Mode
The Item Statistics page gives you a quick performance overview for a single item. Use it when you are reviewing a specific item card and want to check its financial health.
For comparing multiple items side by side, filtering by location or category, or building custom pivot views, use Analysis Mode on the Item Ledger Entries page instead. See How to Use Analysis Mode for details.
For a broader overview of all new features in this release, see What’s New in Business Central 2026 Release Wave 1.