In a certain store, the profit is 320% of the cost. If the cost increases by 25% but the selling price remains constant, approximately what percentage of the selling price is the profit?

Sure, let's break down the problem step by step:

1. Let's assume the cost of the item is represented by "C".
2. The profit is 320% of the cost, which means the profit is 3.2 times the cost: Profit = 3.2C.
3. Now, the cost increases by 25%, which means the new cost is 1.25 times the original cost: New Cost = 1.25C.
4. The selling price remains constant, so it is still the same as the original cost: Selling Price = C.
5. To find the new profit, we need to calculate the difference between the selling price and the new cost: New Profit = Selling Price - New Cost.
6. Substituting the values, New Profit = C - 1.25C = -0.25C.
7. The question asks for the percentage of the selling price that represents the profit. To find this, we divide the profit by the selling price and multiply by 100: Percentage of Profit = (New Profit / Selling Price) * 100.
8. Substituting the values, Percentage of Profit = (-0.25C / C) * 100 = -25%.

Therefore, approximately 25% of the selling price is the profit.