Coconuts

[Mr. Hui]

A businessman devises a business plan for buying and selling coconuts. He calculates that by buying coconuts for $5 a dozen and selling them for $3 a dozen, that in less than a year he will be a millionaire. His business plan and calculations are accurate. How is this possible?

[Sillysidley]

Solution 1:the other people will actually be buying them for $5, and selling for
$3.

Solution 2: He starts out with more than 1000000 dollars, so it goes down

[Sillysidley]

so what's the answer:confused:

[Mr. Hui]

Solution 2 is on the right track.

[Mr. Hui]

When we hear puzzles like this, most of us start thinking in dot-com
terms: elaborate rationalizations of why losing money is a sound business
proposition. Some candidates respond by suggesting the businessman is
building market share by giving away product at below cost. Or that
his strategy is to drive his competitor out of business so that he can
then control the coconut market. All well and good, but these responses
always assume a starting condition that the businessman has more
money at the end of the experiment than before. Perhaps the most elegant
answer is to conclude that the guy is perpetually going to lose money
with this scheme, so that if he ends up a millionaire, he had to have
started out as a billionaire.

somedude, you're correct. Are these challengers too easy?

[ballym]

somedude, you're correct. Are these challengers too easy?

Giving such qizzes keep one alert to check all possibilities. This is very important factor in developing math skills.

[Sillysidley]

no, these r ok

[pineapple74]

so what's the answer:confused:

He was a billionaire and by losing money he became a millionaire.