一道prep2012的题，对解释有点疑问

MisterD

Heating-oil prices are expected to be higher this year than they were last year
--> correct
BUT
Heating-oil prices are expected to be higher this year than last year
--> correct
Ron mentioned if there is a answer choice with tense shift then that is preferred....

Adverbs that refer to AN INDEFINITE TIME IN THE PAST (ever, never, already, yet) typically require the PRESENT PERFECT:

John is hungrier than he HAS EVER BEEN before.
My family HAS NEVER VISITED France.
Mary HAS ALREADY SEEN the movie.
Sally HASN'T FINISHED the book YET.

Thus, in D, WAS ever before is incorrect.

The OA implies the following:
The rate is now lower than [IT HAS] ever [BEEN] before.
The words in brackets are omitted, but their presence is understood.

vicvicvicky

我认为是ever before应该用现在完成时的，所以de不对。如果错了请指教！

奥兰多铁杆球迷

这题答案不是B吗？？？？

Alaska17

摘一段字典上ever的解释。大家就当idiom来处理吧。别过多的想了。
3 [ADV] ADV after compar than, ADV after adj-superl
You use ever after comparatives and superlatives to emphasize the degree to which something is true or when you are comparing a present situation with the past or the future.
She's got a great voice and is singing better than ever...
Japan is wealthier and more powerful than ever before...
He feels better than he has ever felt before...
This is the most awful evening I can ever remember.