A person bought an article and sold it at a profit of 20%. Had he bought it at 20% less, what would have been the profit percentage if the selling price had been the same?

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CDS Elementary Mathematics 3 Sep 2023 Official Paper
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  1. 25%
  2. 40%
  3. 50%
  4. 60%

Answer (Detailed Solution Below)

Option 3 : 50%
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Detailed Solution

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Concept Used:

SP = CP + Profit

Profit% = (Profit/CP) × 100

CP = Cost Price, SP = Selling Price

Calculation:

A person bought an article and sold it at a profit of 20%:

Let's consider CP1 is 100.

⇒ SP = 100 + 100 × (20/100) = 120

Had he bought it at 20% less:

⇒ CP2 = 100 - 100 × (20/100) = 80

Since he still sells it at the same selling price of 120,

⇒ Profit = 120 - 80 = 40

⇒ Profit% = (40/80) × 100 = 50%

∴ The Profit Percentage is 50%.

Shortcut Trick ⇒ SP / CP = (100 + 20) / (100 - 20)

⇒  SP / CP = 120 / 80

⇒ Profit% = [(120 - 80) × 100] / 80 

⇒ 400 / 80 = 50% 

∴ The profit percentage is 50%.

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