Based on the given information, we can determine the comparative advantage for each worker in terms of the goods they can produce.
For the American worker:
- They can produce 20 pairs of shoes or 100 apples per day.
- The opportunity cost of producing 1 pair of shoes is 5 apples (100 apples / 20 shoes).
- The opportunity cost of producing 1 apple is 0.2 pairs of shoes (20 shoes / 100 apples).
For the Brazilian worker:
- They can produce 10 pairs of shoes or 20 apples per day.
- The opportunity cost of producing 1 pair of shoes is 2 apples (20 apples / 10 shoes).
- The opportunity cost of producing 1 apple is 0.5 pairs of shoes (10 shoes / 20 apples).
Comparing the opportunity costs:
- The American worker has a lower opportunity cost for producing apples (0.2 pairs of shoes per apple) compared to the Brazilian worker (0.5 pairs of shoes per apple).
- The Brazilian worker has a lower opportunity cost for producing shoes (2 apples per pair of shoes) compared to the American worker (5 apples per pair of shoes).
Thus, the U.S. has a comparative advantage in the production of apples because it can produce them at a lower opportunity cost than Brazil. Accordingly, the U.S. should focus on growing apples and trade them for shoes.
The correct answer is: comparative advantage.