108. Reporting that one of its many problems had been the recent extended sales slump in women's apparel, the seven-store retailer said it would start a three-month liquidation sale in all of its stores.
(A)
its many problems had been the recent
(B)
its many problems has been the recently
(C)
its many problems is the recently
(D)
their many problems is the recent
(E)
their many problems had been the recent
Choice A is best: the singular pronoun its agrees in number with the singular noun referent retailer; the past perfect verb form had been is used appropriately to refer to action completed prior to the action of the simple past tense said',
and the adjective recent correctly modifies the noun phrase extended sales slump.
The adverb recently in choices B and C distorts the meaning of the sentence by illogically suggesting that what was recent was only the extension of the slump, and not the slump itself(仔细体会，练成正确的感觉). In choices D and E, the plural pronoun their does not agree with the singular noun retailer.
这里对于recently的解释有点不明白The adverb recently in choices B and C distorts the meaning of the sentence by illogically suggesting that what was recent was only the extension of the slump, and not the slump itself
请各位高手指点一下这个应该如何来理解？ | 
