Many people attribute China’s economic surge to the country’s

Question

Many people attribute China’s economic surge to the country’s manipulation of exchange rates and the favorable trade conditions that result from that practice.  But China’s burgeoning middle class—tens of millions of affluent domestic consumers—has been equally as important. With an increasing volume of economic activity occurring within its own borders, favorable exchange rates and trade conditions are less important to the Chinese economy than ever before.

In the argument above, the portion in boldface plays which of the following roles?

(A) It introduces a judgment that the argument opposes.

(B) It is a fact that the argument suggests is only partially true.

(C) It provides evidence in support of the main conclusion of the argument.

(D) It offers an opinion that the author believes should be qualified.

(E) It is a finding that the argument seeks to explain.

DmitryFarber · Accepted Answer

I should add that many people misunderstand the meaning of "qualified" that is used in D. In this context, it means "modified or limited." Often, people read the word as positive and therefore reject the answer choice.

As for B, it's in that rare category of "answers that can be eliminated even if you haven't read the argument." If something is a fact, it's true, so B is self-contradictory. I don't think the real GMAT would ever say something like that in an answer choice.

MyGuruStefan · Answer

Before addressing the bold content, begin by identifying the conclusion of the author's argument, which is that "favorable exchange rates and trade conditions are less important to the Chinese economy than ever before". This position does not refute the bold statement, it merely indicates that "the country's manipulation of exchange rates..." is "less important... than before". Look for an answer choice that reflects this relationship.

Choice A is an extreme, half-right answer choice. The bold statement does introduce a judgment, so the first portion of the choice is correct. However, the argument does not oppose the statement, it only qualifies its importance.
Choice B is also a half-right trap answer choice, because the argument does suggest that "manipulation of exchange rates" is only partially responsible for "China's economic surge". However, this position is subjective and not an absolute fact. Additionally, the author does not indicate that the existence of the opinions of "many people" is partially untrue.
Choice C is a reversal of the prompt, since the bold statement does not support the main conclusion of the argument.
Choice D is a correct paraphrase of the relationship between the bold statement and the conclusion of the argument which states that "the country's manipulation of exchange rates..." is "less important... than before".
Choice E is a reversal of the prompt, since the conclusion does not explain the bold statement. Additionally, the bold statement is an opinion and not a finding.

The correct answer is choice D.

manishtank1988 · Answer

Official Solution

In this Boldface question, it is important to follow the non-bolded portions of the argument to follow what happens to the idea introduced in the bolded first sentence.

Note the phrase "equally as important" in the second sentence after the dash: the author is not trying to disprove the conventional wisdom that currency manipulation caused China's economic surge, but rather to show that it is one of two primary causes.

For this reason, choice (A) is incorrect: the author doesn't want to disprove the bolded portion, just to add to it.

That logic might lead you toward choice (B), but pay particular attention to what the bolded portion would be as a "fact"—it's the notion that people believe something.

The author doesn't think that the fact that people believe that is partially true—the argument is that the belief itself (which is the predicate of the sentence, not the full sentence itself) is partially true. So choice (B) is incorrect.

Choice (D) demonstrates the logic properly: the author believes that the opinion should be qualified, so choice (D) is correct.

I don't understand WHY D is the answer and NOT B?
Please help...

pra1785 · Answer

Why is option B wrong and why is option D correct?

MyGuruStefan · Answer

As I mentioned in the answer reply above, Choice B is a half-right trap answer choice, because while the argument does suggest that "manipulation of exchange rates" is only partially responsible for "China's economic surge" the boldfaced position is subjective and not an objective fact. Additionally, as the official guide indicates, the author does not indicate that the existence of the opinions of "many people" is partially untrue he believes that their opinion is not comprehensive. Please let me know if you require further clarification on this nuanced critical reasoning question

pra1785 · Answer

Hi,

Your explanation helped me understand what is wrong with option B. However, I don't get how D is the right answer. Not that I have any other answer choice in mind now, but how does the bold face imply authors opinion ....

MyGuruStefan · Answer

The bold face  does not  imply the author's opinion, it is instead the opinion of "Many people (who) attribute China’s economic surge to the country’s manipulation of exchange rates and the favorable trade conditions that result from that practice", with which the author takes issue. The author then qualifies this other opinion, but does not outright disagree with it, by stating that "China’s burgeoning middle class – tens of millions of affluent domestic consumers – has been equally as important" and that "with an increasing volume of economic activity occurring within its own borders, favorable exchange rates and trade conditions are less important to the Chinese economy than ever before." This is why choice D is supported as the correct answer.

arpitkansal · Answer

nightblade354 
Please help with this CR question.The solution puzzles me.

nightblade354 · Answer

arpitkansal ,

Let's break it down:

Many people attribute China’s economic surge to the country’s manipulation of exchange rates and the favorable trade conditions that result from that practice.    But   China’s burgeoning middle class—tens of millions of affluent domestic consumers—has been equally as important. With an increasing volume of economic activity occurring within its own borders, favorable exchange rates and trade conditions are less important to the Chinese economy than ever before.

The "but" is bolded and in blue because it is the pivotal point in the passage. If I say "I like candy, but I do not like Reese's.", I am qualifying my original statement similar to the argument above. I am not saying I dislike candy; I am saying I only like certain types. In the argument, the passage is saying something, but then says there is more to the story. This is what we are looking for in our answer.

In the argument above, the portion in boldface plays which of the following roles?

(A) It introduces a judgment that the argument opposes. --  Never opposes the argument, despite the "but". We do not attempt to disprove it

(B) It is a fact that the argument suggests is only partially true. --  We do not attempt to disprove the argument in any way. Similar to (A) in why it is wrong.

(C) It provides evidence in support of the main conclusion of the argument. --  The first portion is not a premise and does not support the conclusion. 
 
(D) It offers an opinion that the author believes should be qualified. --  Bingo. It gives a statement and then the author attempts to shed more light on it without taking away from it. Winner!

(E) It is a finding that the argument seeks to explain. --  The argument isn't explaining the original statement. It is adding more detail to an idea built around the statement. Thus, although close, is incorrect.

Does this help?

arpitkansal · Answer

nightblade354 DmitryFarber Thankyou for the detailed explanation.I understood but not completely.I labelled the boldface as counterpremise or something negative.Due to this options A and B seemed more appealing.

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yenngoc2409 · Answer

arpitkansal 
I think that B is appealing too and I chose it for real, even though I'm aware that it is clearly not the fact. It can be a judgement as A says, but the author doesn't oppose it totally in his conclusion. So A and B must be wrong. 
D is just overlooked due to the appearance of the word 'qualified', as if the author wants to weigh down the impact of China's manipulation over the rise of middle class. But he just says its effect is weaker, and still admits its legitimacy.

P@PU · Answer

Option D - requires thinking one step ahead than regular. Option A is a typical distraction - so avoid extreme sentences is a good take away here.

amanrsingh · Answer

I agree, the only thing which would have provide with the right answer is if one understands what the bold face is, Is it a Judgment or a Fact?? No it is a opinion of number of people, thus A and B clearly are wrong. POE helps a lot in answering CR question

Bunuel · Answer

VERITAS PREP OFFICIAL EXPLANATION:

In this Boldface question, it is important to follow the non-bolded portions of the argument to follow what happens to the idea introduced in the bolded first sentence. Note the phrase "equally as important" in the second sentence after the dash: the author is not trying to disprove the conventional wisdom that currency manipulation caused China's economic surge, but rather to show that it is one of two primary causes. For this reason, choice (A) is incorrect: the author doesn't want to disprove the bolded portion, just to add to it.

That logic might lead you toward choice (B), but pay particular attention to what the bolded portion would be as a "fact" - it's the notion that people believe something. The author doesn't think that the fact that people believe that is partially true - the argument is that the belief itself (which is the predicate of the sentence, not the full sentence itself) is partially true. So choice (B) is incorrect.

Choice (D) demonstrates the logic properly: the author believes that the opinion should be qualified, so choice (D) is correct.

Can,Will · Answer

Its between A&D
Author does not oppose the exchange rates and favorable trade conditions but tell us that now these factors are less relevant to contribute to the overall economy,in other words author qualified(limit) the scope of these factors.
correct answer is D.

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Many people attribute China’s economic surge to the country’s

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Many people attribute China’s economic surge to the country’s

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