Directions: Read the passage/argument and answer the question that follows it.

Strikingly, the number of internet users in China has reached a mind-boggling 210 million. The figure is a staggering statistic, up by more than 50% as compared to the previous year and more than three times the number for India, the emerging Asian giant with which China is most often compared. Analysts expect that in a few months from now, China will have more internet users than the US, the current leader. And because the proportion of the internet user population is so low, at just 16%, rapid growth is likely to continue for some time.

Which of the following is an implicit ASSUMPTION underlying the above argument?

Option (2) represents, at the most, a reiteration of a point directly stated in the passage. Hence it cannot be an assumption at all. Option (3) is not justified because the passage does not hint at anything regarding the percentage of the US population using the internet. At the most, it could be classified as an invalid conclusion, drawn on the basis of the contents given here. In no case does it become an inherent assumption underlying the argument. Option (4), if we place it at the end of the passage, could have become a suitable conclusion, which follows logically from the passage here.  Option (5) refers to a very secondary fact stated in the passage about China’s user population being thrice that of India. But the author primarily makes a point about China and the US, not about India. Thus, it is ruled out despite being numerically correct. Option (1) is the best answer as the paragraph clearly mentions in the last line that due to low user base, the rapid pace of growth is likely to continue, implying thereby that we can add much more at low levels rather than at higher levels of base value.