Question

The stock market gained and lost value over the first four days of the week.
STOCK MARKET VALUE
Day Change
Monday −41.99
Tuesday −64.38
Wednesday +5.64
Thursday −50.69
If the stock market lost value on Friday, which value could represent this change?
Answer
Multiple Choice Answers
+77.41
+96.85
−24.53
0

Answer 1

To find a value that could represent the loss on Friday, first, we need to calculate the total change in stock market value from Monday to Thursday.

Let's sum the changes from each day:
- Monday: −41.99
- Tuesday: −64.38
- Wednesday: +5.64
- Thursday: −50.69

Now, we can calculate the total change:

\[
\text{Total Change} = -41.99 - 64.38 + 5.64 - 50.69
\]

Calculating this step by step:
1. Calculate the loss from Monday and Tuesday:
\(-41.99 - 64.38 = -106.37\)

2. Add Wednesday’s gain:
\(-106.37 + 5.64 = -100.73\)

3. Finally, add Thursday's loss:
\(-100.73 - 50.69 = -151.42\)

Thus, the total change from Monday to Thursday is −151.42.

Now, if the market lost value on Friday, we need to determine what kind of change on Friday will continue to show a loss. Therefore, if we let \(x\) represent the change on Friday, the overall net change would be:

\[
-151.42 + x < 0
\]

This means:
\[
x < 151.42
\]

Now, let's examine the multiple choice answers to find which possible change would reflect a loss:

- +77.41 (not a loss, this is a gain)
- +96.85 (not a loss, this is a gain)
- −24.53 (this is a loss)
- 0 (this does not show a loss)

Out of the options provided, the only one that reflects a loss is **−24.53**.

Thus, the answer is:

**−24.53**