What You’re Trying to Do (in simple terms)
You're uploading your inventory from a legacy system into SAP so that everything’s in place by November 1st go-live. You're using Movement Type 561, which is designed for initial stock entries.
SAP treats materials differently depending on whether they use Standard Price (S) or Moving Average Price (V). That affects how inventory values are calculated and what happens behind the scenes in accounting.
Standard Price vs. Moving Average: What Really Happens
Standard Price (Price Control = ‘S’)
- SAP uses the standard price maintained in the material master.
- The uploaded quantity multiplied by that standard price becomes the inventory value.
- If you enter a different price during the upload (batch input), SAP posts the difference to a price difference account.
Standard price: $10 per unit.
Upload 100 units at $12 each → inventory valued at $10 × 100 = $1,000.
The extra $200 goes to the price difference account.
Moving Average Price (Price Control = ‘V’)
- SAP uses your input value to adjust the moving average price (MAP).
- The value entered in the batch upload is used to calculate the new moving average.
Upload 100 units for $1,500 → SAP sets MAP to $15.
If no value is entered, SAP uses the current MAP in the material master, and MAP stays unchanged.
How to Actually Do the Upload
Use transaction MB1C (or MIGO in newer SAP versions) with Movement Type 561. This is inventory without a purchase order.
Path in SAP GUI
Logistics → Materials Management → Inventory Management → Goods Movement → Goods Receipt → Other
Input Fields
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Document Date | Today’s date |
| Posting Date | Today’s date |
| Movement Type | 561 (defaulted) |
| Plant | e.g., 3000 |
| Storage Location | e.g., 0001 |
Then
- Click Movement type → Receipt → Initial Stock Entry (Own) → To Unrestricted.
- Enter materials with Material Number and Quantity.
- Press SAVE.
Result: You’ll get a Material Document Number. Keep this for reference!
Common Error: G/L Account Blocked
If you get an error such as:
“G/L account 399999 blocked for posting in company code 3000”
Fixing It
- Go to Accounting → Financial Accounting → GL → Master Records → Individual Processing → Centrally.
- Enter G/L Account: 399999 and Company Code: 3000.
- From the menu, choose GL account → Block, deselect all block boxes, and save.
Also check 79999 if you're uploading Finished Goods.
Important: Do this in the master client, not a test or sandbox one.
Pro Tips
- Double-check your price control (S or V) before uploading anything.
- For MAP materials, enter a value in the batch input if you want the MAP to update.
- For Standard Price materials, don’t bother inputting a value; it won’t change the standard price but could cause G/L difference postings.
- Use LSMW or BAPI if you have hundreds or thousands of materials, rather than MB1C one-by-one.
- After upload, reconcile inventory reports using MB52 and MM03.
TL;DR Cheat Sheet
| Scenario | Input Price in Upload? | Valuation Based On | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Price (S) | Optional (ignored) | Standard Price in master | Difference posted to price difference account |
| Moving Avg Price (V) | Yes (recommended) | Your input value | MAP will be recalculated |