The cash payback period for this investment is

A) 4 years
B) 5 years
C) 20 years
D) 3 years

To calculate the cash payback period, we need to determine how long it will take for the cash inflows from the machine to equal the initial investment of $380,000. Looking at the table provided, we can see that the expected net cash inflows for each year are as follows:

Year 1: $100,000
Year 2: $140,000
Year 3: $160,000
Year 4: $120,000
Year 5: $90,000

To determine the cumulative cash inflows, we can add up the net cash inflows for each year until we reach the initial investment of $380,000. From the table, we can see that the cumulative net cash inflows at the end of each year are:

Year 1: $100,000
Year 2: $240,000 ($100,000 + $140,000)
Year 3: $400,000 ($100,000 + $140,000 + $160,000)
Year 4: $520,000 ($100,000 + $140,000 + $160,000 + $120,000)

Therefore, the cash payback period is 4 years (i.e. at the end of year 4, the cumulative net cash inflows equal the initial investment of $380,000). Since the cash payback period is less than the 5-year life of the investment and the company's desired rate of return is 6%, the investment is acceptable.