The Federal Reserve announcement said that growth had accelerated afte

The Federal Reserve announcement said that growth had accelerated after slowing in the second quarter and that the policy makers remain concerned about the prospects of inflation, even though there are few signs of higher energy prices driving up the cost of other goods so far.

A. that growth had accelerated after slowing in the second quarter and that the policy makers remain concerned about the prospects of inflation, even though there are few

B. growth had accelerated after slowing in the second quarter and that the policy makers remain concerned about the prospects of inflation, even though there are few

C. that growth had accelerated after slowing in the second quarter and the policy makers remain concerned about the prospects of inflation, even though there are little

D. growth had accelerated after slowing in the second quarter and the policy makers remain concerned about the prospects of inflation, even though there are little

E. that growth accelerated after slowing in the second quarter and that the policy makers remain concerned about the prospects of inflation, even though there are few

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION:

The original is correct. The equivalent elements, “that growth had accelerated...” and “that the policy makers remain...,” are parallel clauses beginning with "that." The verb tenses are also correct; the action that occurred in the most distant past (“had picked up pace”) uses the past perfect; the later past event (“statement also said”) uses the simple past. Also, “few” is correct, since it modifies the quantifiable noun "signs."

(A) CORRECT. This choice is correct as it repeats the original sentence.

(B) This choice is not parallel; "that" is required before “growth had accelerated...” to make it parallel to “that the policy makers remain..."

(C) This choice is not parallel; “that growth had accelerated...” is not parallel to “the policy makers remain...” Moreover, “little” is incorrect; since “signs” are countable, “few” is required.

(D) This choice is parallel, but the syntax is incorrect. "That" can be colloquially omitted after the verb "said," but not in formal writing. Also, "little" should be replaced by "few."

(E) This choice is parallel, but incorrectly uses the simple past, “accelerated.” This action is the earlier past event, as it must have occurred before the Fed commented on the trend. The earlier of multiple past events must use the past perfect.