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ACCA Applied Knowledge · Management Accounting · Spreadsheets

A budget spreadsheet shows total sales in cell E10 using =SUM(E4:E8). A new product line has been inserted by typing its sales figure in E9, directly below the existing range. Which statement is correct?

The total in E10 will exclude E9 and so be understated. The SUM formula covers only E4 to E8, and a value typed below the range is not picked up. No error message appears, which makes this a dangerous silent error that range checks should catch.

  1. AThe total in E10 will not include E9 because it lies outside the formula range, so the total is understatedCorrect
  2. BThe total in E10 will automatically include E9 because it is adjacent to the range
  3. CThe spreadsheet will show a #REF! error in E10
  4. DThe total will include E9 only if the cell is formatted as currency

Explanation

SUM(E4:E8) covers only rows 4 to 8. A value typed into E9 is outside that range and is ignored, so the total is understated without any error message. Inserting a row within the range would extend it, but typing below does not. #REF! arises from deleted references, and formatting does not affect inclusion.

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