Say a certain manufacturing industry has 63.1 thousand jobs in 2008 , but is expected to decline at an average annual rate of 1.7 thousand jobs per year from 2008 to 2018 . Assuming this holds true, what will be this industry's percent change from 2008 to 2018 ? a. \( 70 \% \) b. \( -27 \% \) c. \( -17 \% \) d. \( -75 \% \) Please select the best answer from the choices provided

Let the initial number of jobs be \( J_{2008} = 63.1 \) thousand. The decline rate is \( 1.7 \) thousand jobs per year for \( 10 \) years (from 2008 to 2018). 1. Calculate the total decrease in jobs: \[ \text{Total Decrease} = 1.7 \times 10 = 17 \text{ thousand} \] 2. Determine the number of jobs in 2018: \[ J_{2018} = 63.1 - 17 = 46.1 \text{ thousand} \] 3. Compute the change in jobs from 2008 to 2018: \[ \text{Change} = J_{2018} - J_{2008} = 46.1 - 63.1 = -17 \text{ thousand} \] 4. Find the percent change: \[ \text{Percent Change} = \frac{-17}{63.1} \times 100 \approx -26.96\% \] Rounded to the nearest whole number, the percent change is approximately \(-27\%\). The best answer is \( -27\% \).