Passage 2
Some suppliers have discount policies that give certain customers a reduced price for goods. Trade discounts are discounts offered to middlemen. For example. the retail price of a shirt may be ; the manufacturer may sell it to the retailer at a 40 percent discount from this price, or S6. Trade discounts permit middlemen to make a profit by performing special marketing functions.
Quantity discounts encourage customers to buy in large amounts. A dealer who buys a truckload of lawn mowers will pay a lower price per lawn mower than the dealer who buys only a few machines. Some firms offer cumulative quantity discounts. These permit a customer to total up consecutive orders to qualify for a discount. For example, let us assume that an order of forty typewriters qualified for a 10 percent discount. An office equipment store might order twenty-five, then ten, and then another five. Since the cumulative total would be forty, the store would be entitled to take 10 percent off its entire bill.
Cash discounts are given in order to encourage prompt payment. Cash discount terms are stated on the bill that accompanies the merchandise. For example. two/ten, net 30" means that a customer who pays within ten days of receiving the merchandise can take percent off the bill. The customer has the choice of paying in ten days and taking the discount, or waiting the full thirty days and paying the net, or full, amount of the bill.
Seasonal discounts are sometimes given by firms that sell seasonal items like air conditioners or ski equipment. A company that installs central home air conditioning may offer customers a 10 percent discount on work done in the fall and winter. A ski shop may give discounts on equipment purchased during the summer. Companies offer seasonal discounts to spread out their sales into those times of the year when business is slow.
Quantity discounts are granted to those ____
A、who buy hardware goods in large amounts
B、who buy a large quantity of goods at a time
C、who buy a truckload of lawn mowers
D、who buy machines
【正确答案】：B
【名师解析】:选项B正确，因为文中提到Quantity discounts鼓励顾客大量购买。例如，购买一卡车割草机的经销商将比只购买几台机器的经销商每台割草机支付更低的价格。这表明，大量购买商品的顾客可以获得数量折扣。选项A、C和D虽然都涉及到购买商品，但它们没有像选项B那样明确地指出"大量购买"这一关键条件。
