A line chart is the most effective visualization for showing the trend of a continuous value, such as account balances, over a period of time (quarters). Filtering to a specific category like "long-term liabilities" allows for focused analysis of how that component of the balance sheet is changing.

A ribbon chart is uniquely suited to show not only the value of different categories over time but also how their rank changes. This is ideal for a balance sheet, as it can clearly illustrate which accounts are growing or shrinking in proportion to others from one quarter to the next, providing insight into the changing financial structure.

B: A clustered column chart showing all account categories without filters would be visually cluttered and difficult to interpret, obscuring key trends.

C: While a column chart can show trends, a line chart (Option A) is generally the preferred and clearer visualization for continuous time-series data.

D: A pie chart is poor for time-series analysis and becomes unreadable with the numerous categories typical of a balance sheet, violating visualization best practices.

1. Microsoft Power BI Documentation

"Line charts in Power BI": "Line charts are a great choice... to visualize data over a long period of time." This supports using a line chart to show balances by quarter (Option A).

2. Microsoft Power BI Documentation

"Create ribbon charts in Power BI": "Ribbon charts are best for showing a category's rank change. The ribbon for the category with the highest rank (value) is always displayed on top of the other ribbons." This directly supports using a ribbon chart to analyze the changing composition and ranking of accounts over time (Option E).

3. Microsoft Power BI Documentation

"Visualization types in Power BI": This document describes the appropriate use cases for various visuals. It notes that pie charts are best with fewer than eight categories and that clustered column charts are for comparing multiple measures

which can become cluttered without filtering (supporting the rejection of Options D and B).