Bellworth Limited Has Ordinary Share Capital of 6 000 000

Multiple Choice

Bellworth Limited has ordinary share capital of 6 000 000 shares of 25p each.Its retained earnings brought forward at 1 January 20X4 totalled £3 420 000 and the company made a loss of £300 000 in the year ended 31 January 20X4.The company's long-term borrowings remained the same throughout the 20X4 financial year at £1 800 000. What was the company's gearing ratio (calculated as debt as a percentage of equity) at 31 December 20X4 (to one decimal place) ?

A) 19.7%
B) 18.5%
C) 39.0%
D) 34.5%