A product's market share rose from 17% to 20% over two years.
By what percentage did its market share increase?
Answer: B: 17.6%
Why: The share rose by 3 percentage points. As a percentage of the starting share: 3 ÷ 17 = 17.6%. "3.0%" confuses points with percent, and dividing by 20 uses the wrong base.
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A share that moves from 12% to 15% has risen by 3 percentage points, but by 25% in relative terms. Mixing the two up is one of the quickest ways to lose marks in a timed numerical section, and the wrong answer is usually sitting among the options.
This free question from our Bain question bank practises exactly that distinction. Read the question wording first: "by how many points" and "by what percentage" are different questions about the same numbers.
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