 For example, a return of +10%, followed by −10%, gives an arithmetic average return of 0%, but the overall result over the 2 sub-periods is 110% x 90% = 99% for an overall return of −1%.The order in which the loss and gain occurs does not affect the result.For a return of +20%, followed by −20%, this again has an average return of 0%, but an overall return of −4%.