The table shows the number of males (M) and females (F), in thousands, in Towns X and Y from 2018 to 2022.

Year	X Males	X Females	Y Males	Y Females
2018	50	49	53	50
2019	52	49	54	52
2020	55	52	55	54
2021	53	53	58	56
2022	55	52	62	55

In which of the following pairs of years is the difference in the number of males and females maximum for Town Y and minimum for Town X respectively?

A2018 and 2021

B2022 and 2018

C2022 and 2021 ✓ Correct

D2020 and 2022

Explanation

The pair is 2022 for Town Y and 2021 for Town X, so the answer is 2022 and 2021.

In Town Y the male-female gaps are 3, 2, 1, 2 and 7 across the five years.

The largest Town Y gap is 7 in 2022.

In Town X the gaps are 1, 3, 3, 0 and 3 across the five years.

The smallest Town X gap is 0 in 2021, when males and females are both 53.

So the year of maximum gap for Y is 2022 and of minimum gap for X is 2021.

The question asks for the two towns' extremes together, so both conditions must be read in the given order.

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