I always state as relative change. I find that people can get really confused if you were to say "X ran in 110% in the time of Y" even though it is stated in a clear way.
My preferred way of communicating this concept is "we observed a +10% change in X compared to Y." I always use a +/- sign and this helps signal that I'm talking about a relative change.
If I am comparing percents, I'll always specify "relative" or "absolute" change though I prefer to use relative change. Occasionally if the change is small, I will use basis points instead of percents to communicate absolute change.
My preferred way of communicating this concept is "we observed a +10% change in X compared to Y." I always use a +/- sign and this helps signal that I'm talking about a relative change.
If I am comparing percents, I'll always specify "relative" or "absolute" change though I prefer to use relative change. Occasionally if the change is small, I will use basis points instead of percents to communicate absolute change.