Automation Enhances Manufacturing Efficiency

Steps:

• Identify reasons for manufacturing decline: offshoring, cost increases, and labor shifts.
• Evaluate each option against economic trends in developed economies.
• Determine which option supports growth rather than decline.
• Confirm B as the outlier by linking to productivity gains.

Why B is correct:

• Automation reduces labor costs and boosts output per worker, per the law of increasing returns, sustaining manufacturing competitiveness.

Why the others are wrong:

• A: Newly industrialised countries offer lower wages, causing job offshoring and market share loss.
• C: Higher input costs, like energy and materials in steel, erode profit margins and force closures.
• D: Preference for services creates labor shortages, limiting production capacity.

Final answer: B