Critical Reasoning

Source: Knewton

The cotton industry is still profitable and projections are that it will remain so. In the United States last year, the total amount of cotton sold by cotton farmers has increased, even though the number of factories that produce cotton clothing has decreased.

Each of the following, if true, could explain the simultaneous increase in cotton sales and decrease in the number of mills that manufacture cotton goods EXCEPT:


(A) The remaining cotton clothing factories produce more cotton clothing per year than they did in the past.

(B) The number of factories that produce home furnishings made from cotton that have opened this year is greater than the number of factories that produce cotton clothing that have closed.

(C) Demand for raw cotton by manufacturers who create cotton pulp for use in paper and plastics has increased dramatically.

(D) During this year the number of cotton factories that will open in the western part of the country is greater than the number of factories that will close in the eastern part of the country.

(E) A greater proportion of the cotton grown in the United States last year was grown for export to other countries than was the case the year before last.


OA: D

I chose E because I thought it would relate to why many of the plants were closing and the demand was still high. Can anyone explain there reasoning as the explanation confused me a bit.

Thank you