Which of these sentences is easier to read and understand for the native speaker? I guess it should also be the most correct of these options. Please note that the question is directed at the punctuations here.
Option A
Looking into recent trends in engineering literature, advances in mechatronics; commerce and trade; agric and chemical engineering are expected to present new challenges thereby opening further opportunities.
Option B
Looking into recent trends in engineering literature, advances in mechatronics, commerce and trade, agric and chemical engineering are expected to present new challenges thereby opening further opportunities.
Option C
Looking into recent trends in engineering literature; advances in mechatronics, commerce and trade, agric and chemical engineering are expected to present new challenges thereby opening further opportunities.
Note: I would like to refer to commerce and trade as a single entity
Answer
Your sentence is very difficult to understand. I may have misunderstood it. But that's your fault, not mine. I would start over.
C is wrong. The clause that begins with Looking... is not a finite clause that can stand on its own as an independent clause, which is required when using the semi-colon to separate clauses.
A is wrong for the same reason.
B is best but not perfect.
The main clause is
public health and chemical engineering are expected to present new challenges
The preposition into has a list of items as its objects:
... recent trends in engineering literature, advances in mechatronics, commerce and trade
That last item should have an and before it:
... trends in engineering literature, advances in mechatronics, and commerce and trade
P.S. You could make it clearer by repeating the governing prepositions:
When we look at recent trends in engineering literature and at advances in mechatronics and in commerce and trade, it is clear that public health and chemical engineering will present new challenges, thereby opening further opportunities.
But I'm still not quite sure of the logic of the sentence: public health seems to come out of nowhere.
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