Search results for "price fixing"
showing 2 items of 2 documents
Testing price-fixing agreements in a multimarket context: The European case of vitamin C
2007
In this paper, we suggest a method to test price-fixing agreements. Prices fixed to multiple shipments are decomposed into a set of destination market effects and time effects in order to allow us to perform an analysis of residuals. We examine the pricing behavior of vitamin C in the European destination markets of German exports. We explore two different periods: January 1991–August 1995 and September 1995–September 2001. Empirical results on the first period, which are consistent with our knowledge obtained from firms’ confessions about illegal agreements, contrast notably with those obtained on the more recent period.
Taking firms’ margin targets seriously in a model of competition in supply functions
2022
We introduce price-markup objectives into a model of supply function competition. We characterize the corresponding supply-function equilibrium and study its qualitative properties. Adherence to price-markup targets is conducive to reduced market competition and increased firm profitability. While pursuing such goals reduces social welfare, welfare never drops below the level corresponding to a Cournot oligopoly. Finally, we establish conditions under which consumer preference for fair pricing inhibits the industry's use of markups as a collusive device.