Question

Last year the widget corporation has $650,000 in sales this year sales are down 4%. How many did the widget company saw this year

Answer 1

The widget company saw $624,000 in sales this year.

We are given the percent decrease and last years sales. This year has seen 4% LESS than last year’s $650,000.

4% = 0.04 as a decimal.
Multiply this by last year’s total sales.
650,000 x 0.04 = 26,000
Subtract $26,000 from last year’s sales.
650,000 - 26,000 = 624,000

The widget company saw $624,000 in sales.

You can check this answer with the formula: Percentage Decrease = [ (Starting Value - Final Value) / |Starting Value| ] × 100.

4 = [ (650,000 - 624,000) / |650,000| ] × 100
4=4, true!