Last visit was: 19 Nov 2025, 07:52 It is currently 19 Nov 2025, 07:52
Home
GMAT
Messages
Tests
Schools
Events
Rewards
Chat
My Profile
Close
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track
Your Progress

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Go to My Error Log Learn more
Close
Request Expert Reply
Confirm Cancel
Back to Forum
Create Topic
   1   2 
705-805 Level|   Assumption|      
User avatar
Harsh2111s
User avatar
Joined: 08 May 2019
Last visit: 10 Feb 2021
Posts: 315
Own Kudos:
266
Given Kudos: 54
Location: India
Concentration: Operations, Marketing
Schools: IIM (D) S.P.Jain Institute (A) XLRI IIML-IPMX '22 NUS '23
GPA: 4
WE:Manufacturing and Production (Manufacturing)
Products:
My Reviews
Schools: IIM (D) S.P.Jain Institute (A) XLRI IIML-IPMX '22 NUS '23
Posts: 315
Kudos: 266
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 18 Jul 2020, 23:44
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
I will put this in simple terms.

Let's suppose question is talking about 2 years 2008, 2009.
Year-----------Pre-Tax price------------Post tax price
2008------------90----------------------x
2009-------------100--------------------108(8% federal tax)

Now negating option D
the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes was not eight or more cents lower than it had been in the previous year.
Break it.
The pretax price of pack of cigarettes(2009)-The pretax price of pack of cigarettes(2008)>/=8

Now 100-90=10, thus it seems raising federal tax doesn't affected post tax cost as much as increase in pre-tax cost did.
Federal tax raised cost by 8 cents while pre-tax cost increased by 10 cents.

Hence option D is necessary assumption.
Hope it helps :)
avatar
Navaneethcs
avatar
Joined: 07 Feb 2021
Last visit: 03 Oct 2022
Posts: 12
Own Kudos:
5
Given Kudos: 545
Posts: 12
Kudos: 5
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 03 Oct 2021, 05:51
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Why is B not a valid condition? It should be a small increase right, else the argument would break down
avatar
amoghhlgr
avatar
Joined: 16 Jun 2019
Last visit: 19 Jul 2023
Posts: 28
Own Kudos:
9
Given Kudos: 135
Location: India
Schools: Said'16
GMAT 1: 690 Q44 V40
GPA: 3.5
Schools: Said'16
GMAT 1: 690 Q44 V40
Posts: 28
Kudos: 9
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 22 Nov 2021, 03:28
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Wrong answer... D cannot be right. The author is clearly under the assumption that the price itself did not increase separately along with the increase in tax.

New Price = Old Price + Tax....

Now, the author claims that the tax increased, so the new price increased and the sales dropped.

But, the assumption here is that the Old Price did not increase simultaneously from its previous year's value.

Option D, states that the Old Price was not less than 8 cents or more than the previous year's price. This is the same as saying that the Old Price was in fact 8 cents or more than the previous price. It is contrary to the explanation we are seeking.

A is the right answer because it talks about the price increase.

Please verify this GMATNinja Bunuel
User avatar
ShreyasJavahar
User avatar
Joined: 30 Sep 2019
Last visit: 24 Dec 2022
Posts: 93
Own Kudos:
67
Given Kudos: 421
Location: India
GMAT 1: 700 Q49 V37
GMAT 2: 720 Q49 V38
GMAT 2: 720 Q49 V38
Posts: 93
Kudos: 67
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 26 Nov 2021, 10:54
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
GMATNinjaTwo


Hi LakerFan24, maybe this will help you keep track of the variables...

a = the after-tax price of cigarettes
p = the pre-tax price of cigarettes
t = the tax

The after-tax price is equal to the pre-tax price plus the tax, so a = p + t. For example, if the pre-tax price of a pack is $4.75 (p = 4.75) and the tax on each pack is $0.25 (t = 0.25), the after-tax price is $5.00 (a = p + t = 4.75 + 0.25 = 5.00).

If the tax (t) increases by 8 cents (from 25 cents per pack to 33 cents per pack) and the pre-tax price (p) remains unchanged, the after-tax price (a) will go up by 8 cents (a = p + t = 4.75 + .33 = 5.08). But what if the pre-tax price (p) decreases from $4.75 to $4.67? In that case, the after-tax price (a) will remain unchanged, despite the tax increase (a = p + t = 4.67 + .33 = $5.00). What if the pre-tax price (p) decreases from $4.75 to $4.50? In that case, the after-tax price (a) will decrease from $5.00 to $4.83 (a = p + t = 4.50 + .33 = 4.83).

Hopefully that helps you make sense of the passage and answer choice D!
Show more

Hello GMATNinjaTwo,

I eliminated D because the option says, "the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes was not eight or more cents lower than it had been in the previous year". Couldn't that also mean that the pretax price could have been much higher? Say the pretax price was 3 dollars earlier, but is now 5 dollars, would it not then stand to reason that the pretax price actually plays a more vital role?
Please help me understand if this is a valid line of reasoning.
Thanks in advance.
User avatar
GMATNinja
User avatar
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
Joined: 13 Aug 2009
Last visit: 18 Nov 2025
Posts: 7,443
Own Kudos:
69,783
 [4]
Given Kudos: 2,060
Status: GMAT/GRE/LSAT tutors
Location: United States (CO)
GMAT 1: 780 Q51 V46
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Products:
GMAT Club Tests Forum Quiz
Expert
Expert reply
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Posts: 7,443
Kudos: 69,783
 [4]
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 01 Dec 2021, 13:01
3
Kudos
Add Kudos
1
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
amoghhlgr
Wrong answer... D cannot be right. The author is clearly under the assumption that the price itself did not increase separately along with the increase in tax.

New Price = Old Price + Tax....

Now, the author claims that the tax increased, so the new price increased and the sales dropped.

But, the assumption here is that the Old Price did not increase simultaneously from its previous year's value.

Option D, states that the Old Price was not less than 8 cents or more than the previous year's price. This is the same as saying that the Old Price was in fact 8 cents or more than the previous price. It is contrary to the explanation we are seeking.

A is the right answer because it talks about the price increase.

Please verify this GMATNinja Bunuel
Show more
The author concludes that the "volume of cigarette sales" is "strongly related to the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes." The fact that an eight-percent tax increase lead to a ten percent drop in sales is cited to support this conclusion. The author also notes that the previous year, sales dropped by only one percent.

We are looking for an assumption required by the argument. In other words, we are looking for something necessary for the argument to hold. In general, an assumption should also strengthen an argument.

Let's consider (A):

Quote:
The argument above requires which of the following assumptions?

(A) During the year following the tax increase, the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes did not increase by as much as it had during the year prior to the tax increase.
Show more
The argument is concluding that the "volume of cigarette sales" is "strongly related to the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes." To support this conclusion, the author suggests that the larger drop in sales after the eight-cent tax increase was due to a larger increase in the after-tax price of the cigarettes. So is the above necessary to reach this conclusion?

Well, if "the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes did not increase by as much as they had the previous year," then the overall price increase might NOT have been greater than it was the previous year. In fact, if the "pretax price of a pack of cigarettes did not increase by as much as they had the previous year," it's possible the previous's year's after-tax price increase was greater then the following year's. And if that were the case, the argument would fall apart, because the greater drop in sales would NOT be accompanied by a greater price increase.

So if anything, (A) weakens the argument. And because an assumption should strengthen an argument, we can eliminate (A).

Let's now consider (D):

Quote:
(D) For the year following the tax increase, the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes was not eight or more cents lower than it had been in the previous year.
Show more
What if the pretax price of cigarettes WAS eight or more cents lower than it had been in the previous year? In other words, what if this assumption weren't true?

If that were the case, then the eight-cent tax increase would be canceled out by the eight-or-more-cent decrease in the pre-tax price. So overall, the after-tax price would either be the same or lower than the previous year's. And if the after-tax price doesn't increase, then the argument falls apart. Because the argument depends on the idea that an increase in after-tax price is causing a decrease in sales. But if there is no increase in after-tax price, then we have no evidence to conclude that the "volume of cigarette sales" is "strongly related to the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes."

So because we need to assume that "the pre-tax price of cigarettes was NOT eight or more cents lower than it had been the previous year," (D) is an assumption on which the argument depends, and it's correct.

I hope that helps!
User avatar
ak2121
User avatar
Current Student
Joined: 26 Jun 2021
Last visit: 19 May 2022
Posts: 51
Own Kudos:
49
Given Kudos: 89
Location: India
Schools: EDHEC (A) ESADE MiM"23 (A)
GMAT 1: 650 Q45 V35
GPA: 3.3
Schools: EDHEC (A) ESADE MiM"23 (A)
GMAT 1: 650 Q45 V35
Posts: 51
Kudos: 49
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 09 Dec 2021, 11:47
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Hi, i am unable to comprehend this question. I cannot properly negate A
User avatar
GMATNinja
User avatar
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
Joined: 13 Aug 2009
Last visit: 18 Nov 2025
Posts: 7,443
Own Kudos:
69,783
Given Kudos: 2,060
Status: GMAT/GRE/LSAT tutors
Location: United States (CO)
GMAT 1: 780 Q51 V46
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Products:
GMAT Club Tests Forum Quiz
Expert
Expert reply
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Posts: 7,443
Kudos: 69,783
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 13 Dec 2021, 08:30
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
ak2121
Hi, i am unable to comprehend this question. I cannot properly negate A
Show more
Did you see this post? Check it out and let us know whether that clears things up!
User avatar
maelstrom93
User avatar
Joined: 12 Nov 2021
Last visit: 13 Nov 2022
Posts: 11
Own Kudos:
1
Given Kudos: 20
Posts: 11
Kudos: 1
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 13 Jan 2022, 07:49
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Pretax means original price.
If negated D = pretax price was eight or more cents lower.
If we take nine cents lower pretax, coupled with eight cents of tax increase = decrease overall "aftertax" price ironically = no overall price increase .
I think it safely kills the conclusion.
User avatar
Raman109
User avatar
Joined: 17 Aug 2009
Last visit: 28 Jul 2025
Posts: 805
Own Kudos:
170
Given Kudos: 33
Posts: 805
Kudos: 170
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 18 Sep 2023, 05:48
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a pack of cigarettes, sales of cigarettes fell ten percent. In contrast, in the year prior to the tax increase, sales had fallen one percent. The volume of cigarette sales is therefore strongly related to the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes.

Argument understanding
Year after the 8-cent increase in tax > sales decreased by 10%
The previous year (prior to the 8-cent increase in tax), sales fell - why? we don't know.

Conclusion - Sales are strongly related to after-tax price (the assumption is that the after-tax price is more for which we need to ensure that before tax price did not decrease because if it decreases, then the after-tax price may not increase even after the tax increase and we can't conclude that sales is strongly related to after-tax price - in that case there may be an alternate reason for falling sales)

The argument above requires which of the following assumptions?

(A) During the year following the tax increase, the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes did not increase by as much as it had during the year prior to the tax increase. - if the pretax price did not increase as much as the previous year, then the after-tax price in the year after the tax increase may be lower than the previous year - that weakens the conclusion. This option says that the pretax price is lower (weakener) as against what we need is that the pre-tax price DID NOT decrease.

(B) The one percent fall in cigarette sales in the year prior to the tax increase was due to a smaller tax increase. - smaller tax increase > small fall in sales, more tax increase (we need to make an additional assumption here) > more fall in sales - in a way it strengthens. What we need is an assumption (necessary condition) and not a strengthener.

(C) The pretax price of a pack of cigarettes gradually decreased throughout the year before and after the tax increase - In line with A its a Weakner. What we need for our assumption is the exact opposite the pre-tax price DID NOT decrease.

(D) For the year following the tax increase, the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes was not eight or more cents lower than it had been in the previous year. - In line with our pre-thinking. The negation of this statement will break the conclusion.

(E) As the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes rises, the pretax price also rises. - not necessarily. The after-pretax price can be the same (say $100) but the after-tax price can be different (say if tax is 12% - $112 or tax is 50% then $150). This is at best an out-of-scope. The scope of the argument is decrease in sales is strongly related to the after-tax price.
User avatar
quantifyverbose
User avatar
Joined: 25 Jul 2023
Last visit: 28 Mar 2025
Posts: 4
Own Kudos:
1
Given Kudos: 5
Posts: 4
Kudos: 1
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 31 Aug 2024, 07:12
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
Questions like these make me wanna quit my gmat . Had my grades not been bad , I wouldnt have cared for this damn exam . Such a curse this exam is.
User avatar
KarishmaB
User avatar
Joined: 16 Oct 2010
Last visit: 18 Nov 2025
Posts: 16,267
Own Kudos:
76,994
 [1]
Given Kudos: 482
Location: Pune, India
Expert
Expert reply
Active GMAT Club Expert! Tag them with @ followed by their username for a faster response.
Posts: 16,267
Kudos: 76,994
 [1]
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 01 Sep 2024, 03:28
Kudos
Add Kudos
1
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
quantifyverbose
Questions like these make me wanna quit my gmat . Had my grades not been bad , I wouldnt have cared for this damn exam . Such a curse this exam is.
Show more
­
:) The prep for this exam makes you work on your logic and reasoning skills - not knowledge, but skills. They take time to develop. But once you do, they help you throughout the rest of your life. You know how there are some people with whom if you talk for even 5 mins, you get an intelligent vibe; it makes you one of those people. Of course, it has to be hard! Keep working, keep learning! Best wishes!
User avatar
sarthak1701
User avatar
Joined: 11 Sep 2024
Last visit: 16 Nov 2025
Posts: 110
Own Kudos:
50
Given Kudos: 18
GMAT Focus 1: 575 Q77 V81 DI78
GMAT Focus 1: 575 Q77 V81 DI78
Posts: 110
Kudos: 50
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 30 Oct 2024, 05:56
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
I was inclined to A initially as well but then I took another look the conclusion -

The volume of cigarette sales is therefore strongly related to the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes.

The author's conclusion hinges on only the after-tax price, while A takes into account only the pre-tax price, logically (outside of GMAT logic), a price increase should suppress demand if other variables are the same but since we only have to use information that is relevant to the conclusion, A is not relevant.

D basically says the pre-tax price did not decrease by 8 or more cents. While this choice is also talking about pre-tax price while the conclusion is about after-tax price, it relates to the after-tax price in a way choice A does not. If the pre-tax price indeed fell by 8 or more cents, the federal tax will have no impact on the after-tax price, if the after-tax price is the same and demand still fell, then there must be some other variables for the decline and that weakens the author's conclusion. An important distinction here is that the author says that the after-tax PRICE impacts demand and not the Tax itself.
User avatar
ClaireCHEN
User avatar
Joined: 09 Jul 2024
Last visit: 15 Jan 2025
Posts: 23
Own Kudos:
2
Given Kudos: 39
Location: China
Schools: Anderson '27 Marshall '27
GMAT Focus 1: 635 Q90 V77 DI77
GPA: 3.2
Schools: Anderson '27 Marshall '27
GMAT Focus 1: 635 Q90 V77 DI77
Posts: 23
Kudos: 2
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 04 Nov 2024, 22:08
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a pack of cigarettes, sales of cigarettes fell ten percent. In contrast, in the year prior to the tax increase, sales had fallen one percent. The volume of cigarette sales is therefore strongly related to the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes.

So basically without tax increase, the sales dropped only one percent while following a tax increase the sales dropped 8 percent, conclusion: the after tax price impacts the sales.

(A) During the year following the tax increase, the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes did not increase by as much as it had during the year prior to the tax increase.
--The reasoning of this argument doesn't involve the price fluctuation AFTER the tax increase

(B) The one percent fall in cigarette sales in the year prior to the tax increase was due to a smaller tax increase.
--The reasoning itself is irrelevant to the cause of tax increase

(C) The pretax price of a pack of cigarettes gradually decreased throughout the year before and after the tax increase
--If true, then the reasoning doesn't stand, then there would be no needs to find the assumption of this reasoning

(D) For the year following the tax increase, the pretax price of a pack of cigarettes was not eight or more cents lower than it had been in the previous year.
--It means the after tax price truly dropped below last year's level, and by using negating technique, if the pretax price went up higher than 8% of last year, it means the conclusion doesn't stand, so D

(E) As the after-tax price of a pack of cigarettes rises, the pretax price also rises.
--Similar to C, if yes, then the reasoning doesn't stand
User avatar
JuniqueLid
User avatar
Joined: 04 Feb 2025
Last visit: 29 Oct 2025
Posts: 53
Own Kudos:
18
Given Kudos: 687
Products:
Forum Quiz
Posts: 53
Kudos: 18
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 21 Mar 2025, 01:59
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
I got this question right and agree with all the rationale stated above for choosing option D. Any thought / correction is welcome!

However, there is an interesting counter-argument to be made that negating (D) DOES NOT necessarily break the argument - that D is not a necessary assumption!

Breaking it down, negating the option to say that "the pre-tax price does drop by 8cents or more" and, more specifically, let's assume the pretax price drop is so large that the after-tax price also drops so much, to an extent that the 10% drop in total sales required an increase in volume to partially offset the price drop. This way, the volume is still "strongly related to aftertax price" just in a different direction. Therefore, the conclusion still holds - negation test not working or this option is not really a critical assumption!
User avatar
GMATNinja
User avatar
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
Joined: 13 Aug 2009
Last visit: 18 Nov 2025
Posts: 7,443
Own Kudos:
69,783
 [1]
Given Kudos: 2,060
Status: GMAT/GRE/LSAT tutors
Location: United States (CO)
GMAT 1: 780 Q51 V46
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Products:
GMAT Club Tests Forum Quiz
Expert
Expert reply
GMAT 2: 800 Q51 V51
GRE 1: Q170 V170
GRE 2: Q170 V170
Posts: 7,443
Kudos: 69,783
 [1]
In the year following an eight-cent increase in the federal tax on a 27 Mar 2025, 07:48
1
Kudos
Add Kudos
Bookmarks
Bookmark this Post
JuniqueLid
I got this question right and agree with all the rationale stated above for choosing option D. Any thought / correction is welcome!

However, there is an interesting counter-argument to be made that negating (D) DOES NOT necessarily break the argument - that D is not a necessary assumption!

Breaking it down, negating the option to say that "the pre-tax price does drop by 8cents or more" and, more specifically, let's assume the pretax price drop is so large that the after-tax price also drops so much, to an extent that the 10% drop in total sales required an increase in volume to partially offset the price drop. This way, the volume is still "strongly related to aftertax price" just in a different direction. Therefore, the conclusion still holds - negation test not working or this option is not really a critical assumption!
Show more
Part of the problem is the specific wording of the question. If the question were, "The conclusion above cannot be true unless which of the following is also true?", then (D) might be a flawed answer.

But, instead, the question is this: "The argument above requires which of the following assumptions?" We're looking for the answer choice that is required in order for the logic of the argument to hold. The author's reasoning falls apart if (D) is not assumed, as explained here: https://gmatclub.com/forum/in-the-year- ... l#p2913760.

Your example attempts to show how the conclusion could still be true without (D), but that doesn't change the fact that the author's argument doesn't work without (D).
   1   2 
Moderators:
GMATNinja
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
7443 posts
GMATNinjaTwo
GMAT Club Verbal Expert
231 posts
miag
189 posts