According to available reliable information, over the past few decades the cocaine purity has:

• A. Increased and its price has declined
• B. Increased and its price has increased
• C. Decreased and its price increased
• D. Decreased and its price decreased

Answer: (A)

The key idea is how illegal drug markets respond to shifts in supply and demand. When production and trafficking networks become more efficient, more cocaine reaches markets and often in a purer form. With more product available and intensifying competition among suppliers, the price per unit tends to fall even as potency rises. Reliable data from surveillance and enforcement agencies show that in recent decades the average purity seen in these markets has tended to increase, while the street price per gram has generally declined overall. There are short-term fluctuations due to seizures or enforcement cycles, but the long-run pattern supports higher purity alongside lower price.