Answer-In the question below, two statements (I) and (II) are given. These statements may be either indepen...

Statement I describes an upstream supply disruption involving a primary agricultural raw material droughts causing cocoa crop shortages. This severely restricts the global availability of cocoa beans. Statement II describes the downstream economic consequencehigher retail prices for final consumer goods chocolates and cocoa-based products that depend directly on cocoa as a primary input. In economic logic, a sudden reduction in the supply of a vital raw material due to environmental factors the cause leads directly to increased production costs and higher retail market prices for the finished commodities the effect. Therefore, Statement I is the direct cause of the situation described in Statement II.

Question

In the question below, two statements (

I and (I
I are given. These statements may be either independent causes or may be effects of independent causes or a common cause. One of these statements may be the effect of the other statement. Read both the statements and decide which of the following answer choices correctly depicts the relationship between these two statements. Statements : I. Unprecedented droughts and severe weather anomalies damaged major cocoa-producing regions, leading to severe crop shortages this harvest season. II. Leading confectionery manufacturers have significantly hiked the retail prices of chocolates and cocoa-based food products in recent months.