Gopal bought a chair for 950 rupees and sold it the next day for 1140 rupees. Tell me, what was Gopal's profit percentage?

Appeared in: SGPGI Nursing Officer-2022

Explanation

The core concept is calculating profit percentage, which is always based on the cost price (CP).
First, calculate the absolute profit: Profit = Selling Price (SP) - Cost Price (CP) = 1140 - 950 = 190 rupees.
Next, use the formula for profit percentage: Profit % = (Profit / CP) × 100.
Substituting the values: (190 / 950) × 100 = (1/5) × 100 = 20%.

Option A: A profit of 25% would mean the selling price was 950 + (0.25 * 950) = 950 + 237.5 = 1187.5 rupees, which is not the case.
Option C: This is a common error that arises from incorrectly calculating the percentage based on the selling price instead of the cost price. (190 / 1140) * 100 ≈ 16.67%, which is close to 15%.
Option D: A profit of 30% would require a selling price of 950 + (0.30 * 950) = 950 + 285 = 1235 rupees.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Profit and Loss Percentage Calculation as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
This is a general aptitude and reasoning question, not directly related to clinical nursing practice.
Basic mathematical skills are essential for nurses for tasks like medication dosage calculation, fluid balance monitoring (I/O charting), and interpreting data, making such questions relevant for assessing overall numeracy.
What if the question asked for profit as a percentage of the selling price? The calculation would be (190 / 1140) * 100, which is approximately 16.67%. This highlights the importance of identifying the correct base for percentage calculations.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the key information given: the Cost Price (CP) is 950 and the Selling Price (SP) is 1140.
Recognize that the question asks for the 'profit percentage'.
Recall the two-step process: first find the profit amount, then find the percentage.
Step 1: Calculate the profit amount using the formula: Profit = SP - CP.
Step 2: Calculate the profit percentage using the formula: Profit % = (Profit / CP) × 100.
Always remember that profit or loss percentage is calculated on the Cost Price unless specified otherwise.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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