{"id":214933,"date":"2025-05-16T04:07:33","date_gmt":"2025-05-16T04:07:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/learnexams.com\/blog\/?p=214933"},"modified":"2025-05-16T04:07:35","modified_gmt":"2025-05-16T04:07:35","slug":"a-machine-costs-n3000-and-has-a-lifespan-of-8-years-after-which-it-can-be-sold-for-n600-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/2025\/05\/16\/a-machine-costs-n3000-and-has-a-lifespan-of-8-years-after-which-it-can-be-sold-for-n600-6\/","title":{"rendered":"A machine costs N3,000 and has a lifespan of 8 years, after which it can be sold for N600."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>A machine costs N3,000 and has a lifespan of 8 years, after which it can be sold for N600.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>An alternative machine costs N4,000, also with a lifespan of 8 years, but its resale value at the end of its life is N1,900.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At what annual discount rate (compounded annually) would it be equally economical to choose either machine? (Ignore taxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-ast-global-color-1-color\">The Correct Answer and Explanation is:<\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To determine the <strong>annual discount rate (r)<\/strong> at which both machines are equally economical, we need to <strong>compare the present value (PV)<\/strong> of their <strong>net costs<\/strong> over 8 years, considering both purchase price and resale value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 1: Define the present value of net cost<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>For both machines, we calculate the <strong>present value of net cost<\/strong> as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>\\text{Net Cost} = \\text{Purchase Price} &#8211; \\text{Present Value of Resale Value}<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, for each machine:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Machine A<\/strong>:<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cost = N3,000<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Resale Value = N600 after 8 years<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Machine B<\/strong>:<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cost = N4,000<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Resale Value = N1,900 after 8 years<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>We equate the net present costs of both machines:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>3,000 &#8211; \\frac{600}{(1 + r)^8} = 4,000 &#8211; \\frac{1,900}{(1 + r)^8}<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 2: Solve for the discount rate $r$<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Subtract both sides:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>3,000 &#8211; \\frac{600}{(1 + r)^8} = 4,000 &#8211; \\frac{1,900}{(1 + r)^8}<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bring like terms together:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>4,000 &#8211; 3,000 = \\frac{1,900 &#8211; 600}{(1 + r)^8}<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>1,000 = \\frac{1,300}{(1 + r)^8}<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Multiply both sides:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>(1 + r)^8 = \\frac{1,300}{1,000} = 1.3<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now solve for $r$:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>1 + r = (1.3)^{1\/8}<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>1 + r = 1.0335<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>r = 0.0335 \\text{ or } 3.35\\%<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u2705 Final Answer: <strong>3.35%<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Explanation (300+ words):<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This problem involves comparing the <strong>net present cost<\/strong> of two capital investments (machines), each with different <strong>initial costs and resale values<\/strong> at the end of 8 years. The goal is to determine the <strong>discount rate<\/strong> at which these two options become financially equivalent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In economics and finance, the <strong>present value (PV)<\/strong> concept is used to determine how much a future amount of money is worth today, taking into account the time value of money. The further in the future a cash flow is, the less valuable it is today. This principle is crucial when evaluating long-term investments like machinery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For both machines, we assume:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>No recurring operational costs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>No tax implications.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Only the initial purchase and final resale value matter.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Machine A is cheaper to buy (N3,000) but has a lower resale value (N600). Machine B is more expensive (N4,000) but returns more at the end of its life (N1,900). Over 8 years, the real value of these resale amounts depends on the <strong>discount rate<\/strong> applied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We used the <strong>present value formula<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>$$<br>\\text{PV} = \\frac{\\text{Future Value}}{(1 + r)^n}<br>$$<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Where:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>PV is the present value of the resale amount.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>r is the annual discount rate.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>n is the number of years (8 years in this case).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>By equating the <strong>net present cost<\/strong> of both machines and solving for $r$, we found the <strong>breakeven discount rate<\/strong> where the total economic cost is the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At a <strong>3.35% annual discount rate<\/strong>, it doesn&#8217;t matter which machine you choose\u2014they both result in the same economic cost when time value of money is considered.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A machine costs N3,000 and has a lifespan of 8 years, after which it can be sold for N600. An alternative machine costs N4,000, also with a lifespan of 8 years, but its resale value at the end of its life is N1,900. At what annual discount rate (compounded annually) would it be equally economical [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-214933","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-exams-certification"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=214933"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214933\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=214933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=214933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.learnexams.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=214933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}