Unless you’re bringing the goods to your premises by foot, that is by your own foot, you’re bound to encounter some sort of transportation expenses – whether it’s someone else’s service you’re using or your own transportation which depreciates and uses fuels, thus creating expenses. The same way you’re likely to encounter handling expenses when storage spaces are used in-between transports or the goods require special treatment (i.e. special packaging). 

There is a difference however in whether it’s your own expenses or you’re buying services. If it’s your own expense, you’re likely to show this expense as a part of the income statement as the transaction takes place. Showing the expense within the cost of inventory on the balance sheet would be ineffective since you would have to start pricing your own services effectively, measuring the fuel consumed per trip and so on.

However, if its third party services you’re using, those are very accurately measureable. Such expenses are included in the cost price of inventory on the balance sheet and expensed on the income statement as the item is sold. As you go about distributing the expenses, i.e. either by dividing the total expense on items purchased with this specific transport (and handling charge) or by dividing specific cost by specific items, i.e. not all items required special handling for an example, you come about the cost price for an inventory that’s including transportation and handling expense.