The population of a country increased by an average of 2% per year from 2000 to 2003. If the population of this country was 2 000 000 on December 31, 2003, then the population of this country on January 1, 2000, to the nearest thousand would have been

To solve this problem, the user needs to know the formula for compound interest, which is:

A = P(1 + r/n)^(nt)

where: A = the final amount P = the principal amount r = the annual interest rate (as a decimal) n = the number of times the interest is compounded per year t = the number of years

In this problem, the population is increasing by an average of 2% per year, which means the annual interest rate (r) is 2%. The population is not being compounded, so n = 1. The time period (t) is 3 years. We can use this information to solve for the principal amount (P), which is the population in 2000.

Let P be the population in 2000.

Then we have:

2,000,000 = P(1 + 0.02)^3

Simplifying this equation:

2,000,000 = P(1.02)^3

2,000,000 = P(1.061208)

P = 2,000,000/1.061208

P = 1,883,449.599

Rounding this value to the nearest thousand, we get:

The Answer is: A. 1 848 000.