To determine which country has a comparative advantage in producing cups, we need to calculate the opportunity cost of producing 1 unit of cups for each country. The country with the lowest opportunity cost has the comparative advantage.
The opportunity cost for each country can be calculated using the formula:
[tex]\[ \text{Opportunity Cost} = \frac{\text{Units of Plates Produced per Hour}}{\text{Units of Cups Produced per Hour}} \][/tex]
Let's calculate the opportunity cost for each country:
1. India:
[tex]\[ \text{Opportunity Cost}_{\text{India}} = \frac{10 \text{ plates}}{15 \text{ cups}} = \frac{2}{3} \approx 0.67 \][/tex]
2. France:
[tex]\[ \text{Opportunity Cost}_{\text{France}} = \frac{9 \text{ plates}}{8 \text{ cups}} = 1.125 \][/tex]
3. Japan:
[tex]\[ \text{Opportunity Cost}_{\text{Japan}} = \frac{7 \text{ plates}}{7 \text{ cups}} = 1 \][/tex]
4. Canada:
[tex]\[ \text{Opportunity Cost}_{\text{Canada}} = \frac{9 \text{ plates}}{6 \text{ cups}} = 1.5 \][/tex]
Now we compare the opportunity costs:
- India's opportunity cost is [tex]\( 0.67 \)[/tex]
- France's opportunity cost is [tex]\( 1.125 \)[/tex]
- Japan's opportunity cost is [tex]\( 1 \)[/tex]
- Canada's opportunity cost is [tex]\( 1.5 \)[/tex]
The country with the lowest opportunity cost for producing cups is India, with an opportunity cost of [tex]\( 0.67 \)[/tex].
Therefore, the correct answer is:
[tex]\[ \boxed{\text{C. India}} \][/tex]
