Sentence Correction

Since February, the Federal Reserve has raised its short-term interest rate target five times, and because of the economy's continued strength, analysts have been predicting for weeks that the target will be raised again in November.

A. because of the economy's continued strength, analysts have been predicting for weeks that the target will
B. with the economy's strength continuing, analysts predicted for weeks that the target
C. because the economy continues strong, analysts predicted for weeks that the target would
D. due to the economy's continued strength, analysts have been predicting for weeks that the target
E. due to the fact of the economy's continued strength, analysts predicted for weeks that the target wi

plz explain

Analyzing differences in the answers.

Have been predicting vs predicted. Reading the statement, and especially the key clause "Since Februrary", I chose "have been predicting" as the correct verb because present perfect indicates an action that started in the past and is still continuing.

A and D are the remaining choices, and the difference is "because" vs "due to". "Because" modifies a verb action, "due to" modifies a noun. In this case, analysts have been predicting something because of the clause, so the correct choice should be:

A

"Since February" is a keyword here because it tells us that we're dealing with a present perfect timeframe.

• Incorrect: Since February, analysts predicted...

• Correct: Since February, analysts have been predicting...

This leaves us with A or D.

The significant split between A/D is

• A: Analysts have been predicting that the target will be raised (in the future)

• D: Analysts have been predicting that the target be raised (in the future)

A is better. A prediction is being made in the present (present perfect actually); the action predicted should be expressed in the future.

A is correct.

Look for topic="verb Tense" and difficulty="600-700" to find similar questions in the drill generator. A much more detailed discussion can also be seen at GMATPrep question 2045

Good luck,
-Patrick