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I’m just gonna put it out here:

If something goes down 10% and then up 10% again you are not where you started

The 10% increase is on a smaller amount

100 - 10 = 90 + 9 = 99

This also applies to the stock markets for example

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in reply to stux⚡

When I worked retail, I had a guy argue with me that 10% off meant $10 off, absolutely. 😬
in reply to stux⚡

math gymnastics might be fun, but entirely useless. No one considers 401k still be a valid thing. Every day survival is more important.
China response will be multi layered and harsh. Weaponry it has prepared for this moment is massive. There will be almost nothing left of America economy in few years.
in reply to stux⚡

Exactly.

I use the 20% example:
If something costs $100 and it's price goes down 20%, the product now costs $80.

If that $80 price goes up by 20%, the new price becomes $96.

Going from $80 back to $100 would be an increase of 25%

in reply to stux⚡

as a country, we've been failing at math for generations
in reply to stux⚡

Unless you sold at 100% and re-bought at 90%
In which case, KA-CHING!
You know. Like if you knew in advance that it was going to do that.
in reply to stux⚡

The order does not even matter. If it first goes up and then down then
100 + 10 = 110 -11 = 99
in reply to stux⚡

if you're a pension fund and have to sell holdings on the way down (which someone else buys) and later spent those same dollars to buy back on the way up (which someone else sold you) and the market is fully back where it was before, these percentages don't matter. But you lost a piece of your holdings and somebody else made a ton. This does not even include the transaction costs, which is friction on top of it.
in reply to stux⚡

I’ve had that argument with a telco who screwed up an offer before.

They tried to put 2 smaller %age discounts on the account as a workaround but the billing system would do the first one then take the 2nd discount off that new value