Arrange the following households (A, B, C and D) in terms of increasing…

2024

Arrange the following households (A, B, C and D) in terms of increasing percentage of expenditure (E) to their income (I)

A. I = 5.0 lakh, E = 4.0 lakh

B. I = 6.0 lakh, E = 4.5 lakh

C. I = 8.0 lakh, E = 5.0 lakh

D. I = 4.8 lakh, E = 3.2 lakh

Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

Answer: C. C, D, B, AConcept: The share of its income that a household spends is the expenditure-to-income ratio written as a percentage, (E / I) x 100. This is a relative measure…

  1. A.

    D, A, B, C

  2. B.

    D, B, C, A

  3. C.

    C, D, B, A

  4. D.

    D, A, C, B

Attempted by 9 students.

Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: C

Concept: The share of its income that a household spends is the expenditure-to-income ratio written as a percentage, (E / I) x 100. This is a relative measure - it depends only on how the two amounts compare with each other, not on how large they are. A household with the biggest expenditure in rupees therefore need not have the biggest expenditure share, because its income may be larger too.

Application: Convert each household's expenditure into a percentage of its own income.

  1. Household A: (4.0 / 5.0) x 100 = 0.8 x 100 = 80%

  2. Household B: (4.5 / 6.0) x 100 = 0.75 x 100 = 75%

  3. Household C: (5.0 / 8.0) x 100 = 0.625 x 100 = 62.5%

  4. Household D: (3.2 / 4.8) x 100 = (2 / 3) x 100 = 66.67% (approximately)

Household

Income I (lakh)

Expenditure E (lakh)

E as % of I

A

5.0

4.0

80%

B

6.0

4.5

75%

C

8.0

5.0

62.5%

D

4.8

3.2

66.67%

Cross-check: comparing the fractions directly gives the same ranking without percentages. 5.0/8.0 = 0.625 is smaller than 3.2/4.8 = 0.667, which is smaller than 4.5/6.0 = 0.75, which is smaller than 4.0/5.0 = 0.8. Note that the household spending the most rupees has the smallest expenditure share, because its income is the largest - exactly the trap the concept above warns about.

Result: arranged in increasing percentage of expenditure to income, the households come in the order C (62.5%), D (66.67%), B (75%), A (80%).

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