Final answer:
The interest earned on a $15,000 deposit at 3% APR compounded semiannually for five years is $2405.43 when rounded to the nearest cent.
Step-by-step explanation:
To calculate the interest earned on a $15,000 deposit at 3% APR compounded semiannually for five years, we use the formula for compound interest:
A = P (1 + r/n)^(n*t)
Where:
A is the amount of money accumulated after n years, including interest.
P is the principal amount (the initial amount of money).
r is the annual interest rate (decimal).
n is the number of times that interest is compounded per year.
t is the time the money is invested for in years.
For this example:
- P = $15,000
- r = 3% or 0.03 (as a decimal)
- n = 2 (since the interest is compounded semiannually)
- t = 5
Now, let's plug these values into the formula:
- A = 15000 * (1 + 0.03/2)^(2*5)
- A = 15000 * (1 + 0.015)^10
- A = 15000 * (1.015)^10
- A = 15000 * 1.16036233
- A = 17405.43
To find the interest earned, we subtract the principal from the total amount:
Interest earned = A - P
Interest earned = 17405.43 - 15000
Interest earned = $2405.43
The interest earned on a $15,000 deposit at 3% APR compounded semiannually for five years is $2405.43, rounded to the nearest cent.