Direction: Carefully read the provided passage to respond to the subsequent questions. Each question will present five answer options. Select the appropriate option as your answer. Pink Tax is commonly used to describe a situation wherein things associated with women are priced higher than those with men. Generally speaking, women pay more than males for similar items. The pink tax is not enforced by the government but by the businesses selling the products. According to experts, the pricing disparity is due to market forces. The pink tax has long imposed an economic burden on women around the world—especially since women continue to earn less than men.

According to a study _________ the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs in 2015, women's products are typically more expensive than men's without a proper reason. The study concluded that products explicitly marketed for women cost seven per cent more on average than products sold for men. This discrepancy includes apparel, toys, and healthcare products, among other things. The largest discrepancy came to personal care/hygiene products, where women's products cost 13 per cent more than men's. Several countries have investigated the pink tax, including Argentina, France, Germany, the UK, Australia, and Italy. For example, in the UK, it was found that women and girls were being charged, on average, 37 per cent more for toys, cosmetics, and clothes than their male counterparts. In the UK, girls' school uniforms were also 12 per cent more expensive than boys' uniforms. In Singapore, a check by the Sunday Times on 10 companies found that women pay more for some products and services, such as dry cleaning and razors, offered by around half of these companies. Additionally, women in Singapore have to pay more premiums for Careshield Life, a national long-term care insurance scheme introduced by the government. 

Examples of pink tax in India include salon services, personal care goods such as shampoos, soaps, and deodorants, as well as clothing, toys, and accessories such as jewelry. Presently, women are heavily exploited by vegan products and non-animal-tested cosmetics that are significantly more expensive, a form of taxation