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Question

Reena makes a profit of 20% by selling pens at a certain price. If she charges ₹5 more on each pen, she will gain 40%. The initial selling price of one pen was:

This question was previously asked in
SSC Selection Post 2024 Question Paper (26-Jun-2024) (Shift-4)
The correct answer is
₹30

Solving for Initial Selling Price with Profit Percentages

This problem involves calculating the original selling price of an item (pens) given information about profit percentages at different selling prices. We need to determine the initial selling price when Reena makes a 20% profit, and how this changes when the price is increased.

Understanding the Key Information

Let's break down the information given:

  • Initial scenario: Reena makes a 20% profit.
  • Second scenario: If she increases the price by ₹5, she gains 40%.
  • Goal: Find the initial selling price of one pen.

Calculations and Step-by-Step Solution

We can solve this using the concepts of Cost Price (CP) and Selling Price (SP). Let:

  • CP = Cost Price of one pen
  • SP1 = Initial Selling Price of one pen
  • SP2 = New Selling Price after the increase

Step 1: Formulate equations based on the profit percentages.

When there is a profit percentage, the Selling Price (SP) is calculated as:

SP = CP * (1 + (Profit Percentage / 100))

From the first scenario (20% profit):

SP1 = CP * (1 + (20 / 100))

SP1 = CP * (1 + 0.20)

SP1 = 1.20 * CP (Equation 1)

From the second scenario (40% profit):

SP2 = CP * (1 + (40 / 100))

SP2 = CP * (1 + 0.40)

SP2 = 1.40 * CP (Equation 2)

Step 2: Relate the two selling prices.

We know that the new selling price (SP2) is ₹5 more than the initial selling price (SP1):

SP2 = SP1 + 5 (Equation 3)

Step 3: Solve the system of equations.

Substitute Equation 1 and Equation 2 into Equation 3:

(1.40 * CP) = (1.20 * CP) + 5

Now, rearrange the equation to solve for CP:

1.40 * CP - 1.20 * CP = 5

0.20 * CP = 5

CP = 5 / 0.20

CP = ₹25

Step 4: Calculate the initial selling price (SP1).

Using Equation 1:

SP1 = 1.20 * CP

SP1 = 1.20 * 25

SP1 = ₹30

Verification

Let's check if this matches the second scenario:

  • Initial SP (SP1) = ₹30
  • New SP (SP2) = SP1 + ₹5 = ₹30 + ₹5 = ₹35
  • Cost Price (CP) = ₹25
  • Profit in the second scenario = SP2 - CP = ₹35 - ₹25 = ₹10
  • Profit Percentage = (Profit / CP) * 100 = (10 / 25) * 100 = 0.40 * 100 = 40%

This confirms our calculation. The initial selling price that yielded a 20% profit was ₹30.

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  2. Two articles were sold for Rs.3,000 each, with no loss and profit in the entire transaction. If one was sold at a profit of 25%, then the loss incurred on the second article is _______.

  3. A man sells a cow for Rs.22,000 and gains 10%. At what price should he sell the same cow, in order to gain 14%?

Important Questions from Profit and Loss

  1. Ram bought a chair at 35% discount on its market price, Had Ram got no discount, he would have had to pay ₹245 more. How much did Ram pay for the chair? 

  2. A shopkeeper bought an item for Rs. 4,500 and sold it at a loss of 5%. From this money, he bought another item and sold it at a profit of 10%. What is his overall profit?

  3. A man sells two articles at Rs. 9,180 each. He gains 8% on one article and loses 15% on the other. His overall profit or loss is:

  4. A shopkeeper selling an article for ₹46 loses 8%. In order to gain 6%, what should be the selling price of the article?

  5. Rahul purchased 80 items from the market. 25% items of the total items were defective and the remaining items were sold at 50% profit. What will be the overall profit percentage?

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