A merchant marks his goods up by 40% and then offers a discount of 15% on the marked price. What % profit does the merchant make after the discount?  Pick one.
A) 21 %  B) 25 %  C) 69 %  D) 31 %  E) 19 %

Rationale: let the original price be 100 . after 40 % markup , price = 140 after 15 % discount on this marked - up price , price = 140 - ( 15 % of 140 ) = 140 - 21 = 119 final profit = ( ( 119 - 100 ) / 100 ) * 100 = 19 % option e
Answer: E