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Question

A man buy two watches at Rs.4000. He sold one watch at 20% profit and second at 10% loss. In this transaction the overall profit or loss will be 5%.Find the cost price of first watch.

This question was previously asked in
RBI Assistant Prelims Memory Based Paper (27 March 2022) (Shift 2)
The correct answer is

Rs.2000

Transaction Analysis

The problem asks us to find the cost price (CP) of the first watch purchased by a man. We know the total cost of two watches, the profit percentage on the first watch, the loss percentage on the second watch, and the overall profit percentage on the entire transaction.

Given Transaction Details

Here's a summary of the provided information:

Total Cost Price (CP) of two watches Rs. 4000
Watch 1: Profit Percentage 20%
Watch 2: Loss Percentage 10%
Overall Transaction Profit Percentage 5%

Calculation Method

We'll use algebraic equations to solve this. Let:

  • CP1 = Cost Price of the first watch
  • CP2 = Cost Price of the second watch
  • SP1 = Selling Price of the first watch
  • SP2 = Selling Price of the second watch
  • TSP = Total Selling Price

1. Formulating the Equations

Based on the details, we can write:

  • Total Cost Price: CP1 + CP2 = 4000 --(Equation 1)
  • Selling Price of Watch 1: SP1 = CP1 $\times$ (1 + 20/100) = CP1 $\times$ 1.20
  • Selling Price of Watch 2: SP2 = CP2 $\times$ (1 - 10/100) = CP2 $\times$ 0.90
  • Total Selling Price: TSP = SP1 + SP2 = (1.20 $\times$ CP1) + (0.90 $\times$ CP2)
  • Overall Profit Amount: 5% of 4000 = (5/100) $\times$ 4000 = 200
  • Total Selling Price (from overall profit): TSP = Total Cost Price + Overall Profit = 4000 + 200 = 4200

So, the second key equation is:

1.20 $\times$ CP1 + 0.90 $\times$ CP2 = 4200 --(Equation 2)

2. Solving for CP1

We need to solve the system of two equations:

  1. CP1 + CP2 = 4000
  2. 1.20 $\times$ CP1 + 0.90 $\times$ CP2 = 4200

From Equation 1, express CP2:

CP2 = 4000 - CP1

Substitute this into Equation 2:

1.20 $\times$ CP1 + 0.90 $\times$ (4000 - CP1) = 4200

Distribute the 0.90:

1.20 $\times$ CP1 + 3600 - 0.90 $\times$ CP1 = 4200

Group the CP1 terms:

(1.20 - 0.90) $\times$ CP1 = 4200 - 3600

0.30 $\times$ CP1 = 600

Calculate CP1:

CP1 = $\frac{600}{0.30}

CP1 = 2000

3. Determining the Cost Price of the First Watch

The calculation shows that the cost price of the first watch is Rs. 2000.

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Similar Questions

  1. An article when sold at a discount of Rs. 100, the shopkeeper earns the profit of 140% and if it is sold at no discount, then profit will be 220%. Find the CP of the article.

  2. A and B started business together by investing Rs. 45,000 in ratio of 2 : 3. If after 3 months C invests Rs. 30,000 then what would be the ratio of their profit sharing at end of one year (A : B : C)?


Important Questions from Profit and Loss

  1. Aman has certain number of notes of denomination ₹20 and ₹10 which amount to ₹390. If the numbers of notes of each kind are interchanged, then the new amount is ₹90 less than before. Find the number of notes of ₹20 denomination.

  2. What is the % profit on the cost price of an article if there is a profit of 20% on the selling price?

  3. An article was purchased for Rs.7000. Later its price was marked up by 30%. It was sold at a discount of 10% on the marked-up price. What was the profit percent on the cost price?

  4. A man bought two dogs for Rs. 2600. He sold one of them at a loss of 28% and the other at a profit of 36%. If each dog was sold for the same price. The cost price of the dog which was sold at loss was?

  5. An article when sold at a discount of Rs. 100, the shopkeeper earns the profit of 140% and if it is sold at no discount, then profit will be 220%. Find the CP of the article.

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