Economist: The automobile industry seems to be on the way to recovery

(A) It is an inference drawn from the premise that the auto companies expect sales to increase in the near future..............It's not inference. In fact, it's the premise.

(B) It is an inference drawn from the premise that the automotive industry is recovering...........................Same as A

(C) It is the primary evidence from which the argument’s conclusion is drawn....................................Looks fine

(D) Its truth is required in order for the argument’s conclusion to be true............................Not necessarily.

(E) It is the phenomenon that the argument seeks to explain......................................It's the evidence that the argument is using to explain another event.

IMO OA should be C

(C) in my opinion.

* Economist's conclusion: The automobile industry seems to be on the way to recovery
* Premise on which this conclusion is based: That the auto companies are purchasing more equipment and spending more on R&D than ever before.

Hence, (C) is the correct choice as it is the primary piece of evidence on which the Economist's position rests.
_________________

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

Answer: C

STEP 1: Read the question and identify your task.
This is a Describe question. It asks you to describe how a certain fact is being used within the argument.

STEP 2: Read the argument with your task in mind.
When you read through the argument, you pay close attention to this fact and how it functions. In this case, that the auto companies are purchasing more equipment and spending more on R&D seems to be a justification or equipment and spending more on R&D seems to be a justification or evidence supporting the conclusion of the argument. This argument actually has the conclusion in the first sentence.

STEP 3: Know what you’re looking for.
The correct answer discusses the fact as a justification or evidence.

STEP 4: Read every word of every answer choice.
Answer A states that the fact is an inference from a premise when, in fact, it is the exact opposite. That companies expect sales to increase is the inference from the fact under consideration. Answer B is incorrect for the same reason; your fact is not an inference but a premise or basis for inference. Answer C states that the fact is the primary evidence for the conclusion, and this seems like your answer because the economist concludes that industry is on the way to recovery based on the fact under consideration, as you formulated from reading the question and the argument. Answer D states that the fact is required for the conclusion to be true, but the conclusion may be true based on other facts that you do not have on hand, so this is not the function of the facts under consideration. Finally, the argument does not explain why the companies are spending more. It merely makes a judgment based on that fact, so answer E cannot be correct. The correct choice is answer C.
_________________