(esp. BrE ) ( AmE usually percent ) noun
VERB + PER CENT
▪ account for , amount to , be equal to , comprise , constitute , equal , represent
▪
Overseas earnings accounted for 9% of the total last year.
▪ contain
▪
Roman coins containing about 25% zinc
▪ hit , reach , stand at , total
▪
Their share of the vote reached 6.5% in 1998.
▪ exceed , top
▪
Sales have already exceeded 25% of the predicted annual turnover.
▪ (All the verbs in the following collocate groups may be followed by by , from or to plus per cent / percent . Sometimes the word by is left out.) , be up , climb , expand , go up , grow , improve , increase , jump , leap , rise , shoot up , soar , surge
▪
Prices rose by 12% in 1998.
▪
Prices rose 12%.
▪ be down , come down , decline , decrease , dip , drop , fall , go down , plummet , plunge , shrink , slide , slip , slump ( esp. BrE )
▪
Profitability is down from 16% to 12.2%.
▪ boost sth , increase sth , raise sth
▪
We're hoping to boost sales by 10%.
▪ cut sth , reduce sth , slash sth
▪
Operating expenses were slashed 54.2%.
PREPOSITION
▪ about five, ten, etc. ~ , around five, ten, etc. ~
▪ by five, ten, etc. ~
▪
They aim to cut carbon dioxide levels by 20% in 15 years.
▪ over five, ten, etc. ~
▪ up to five, ten, etc. ~
▪
a process that can reduce the cost by up to 15%
▪ ~ of sth
▪
In 40% of all cases, the parents had no idea of their child's problem.
PHRASES
▪ a boost of five, ten, etc. ~ , an improvement of five, ten, etc. ~ , an increase of five, ten, etc. ~ , a jump of five, ten, etc. ~ , a rise of five, ten, etc. ~
▪
a jump of 8% in cases of the disease
▪ a cut of five, ten, etc. ~ , a decline of five, ten, etc. ~ , a decrease of five, ten, etc. ~ , a drop of five, ten, etc. ~ , a fall of five, ten, etc. ~ , a reduction of five, ten, etc. ~
▪
a fall of 12% in cases of the disease
▪ only five, ten, etc. ~
▪
Only 10% of the teenagers agreed with this statement.
▪ fewer than five, ten, etc. ~ , less than five, ten, etc. ~ , more than five, ten, etc. ~
▪
Profits rose by more than 50% last year.
▪ growth of five, ten, etc. ~
▪
Growth of 11% is forecast.
▪ in the bottom five, ten, etc. ~ , in the top five, ten, etc. ~
▪
His son was in the top 2% of his class.
▪ five, ten, etc. ~ less , five, ten, etc. ~ more
▪
New cars use about 35% less fuel.
▪ five, ten, etc. ~ of all , five, ten, etc. ~ of a total
▪
The tribe's land now amounts to around 50% of the total land area.
◆◆◆
NOTE: Financial indicators
▪ … is down , … is up
▪
With prices down, it might be time to start buying.
▪
The index was up 18.84 points.
▪ … reaches sth , … stands at sth
▪
Consumer confidence reached a 30-year high.
▪
Second-quarter sales stood at $18 billion.
▪ … is/remains unchanged
▪
The five-year Treasury yield was unchanged at 2.68%.
▪ … gains (sth)
▪
Gold stocks gained 6% this week.
▪ … suffers (sth)
▪
Profit margins suffered when the company lowered prices to remain competitive.
▪ … climbs , … edges up , … goes up , … increases , … jumps , … rises , … rockets , … shoots up , … skyrockets , … soars
▪
Earnings per share climbed from 3.5p to 5.1p.
▪
The Brazilian real has increased in value relative to the euro.
▪
Profits have shot up by a staggering 25%.
▪
Oil prices have skyrocketed.
▪ … comes/goes down , … crashes , … declines , … decreases , … dives , … drops , … falls , … plummets , … plunges , … shrinks , … slips , … slumps
▪
Banana exports crashed nearly 50%.
▪
The pound fell to a 14-year low against the dollar.
▪
Net income plummeted to $3.7 million.
▪ … increases in value , … decreases in value (for currencies)