Background
An international cartel is a formal or informal arrangement among companies from different countries to limit competition and manipulate market conditions to their advantage. By aligning their strategies on key aspects like pricing, market shares, and distribution of customers, firms in an international cartel work collectively to maximize their profits. This behavior defies the natural market competition and can lead to higher prices and reduced innovation.
Historical Context
International cartels have existed in various forms throughout economic history, often emerging during times of oligopoly—where few firms dominate the market. Significant global events, such as the two World Wars and the ensuing economic reconstructions, created environments where these cartels could thrive. Over time, international efforts to curb such practices have intensified, leading to stricter regulations.
Definitions and Concepts
An international cartel involves the following key elements:
- Collusion: Coordinated actions between competing firms.
- Explicit Agreement: Direct and formalized pacts regarding market practices.
- Supply Control: Manipulating the availability of goods and services.
- Price Fixing: Establishing agreed-upon prices.
- Market Share Allocation: Determining and distributing market shares among member firms.
- Customer Allocation: Assigning specific customers or regions to different firms.
- Profit Sharing: Deliberately dividing profits to ensure all cartel members benefit.
Major Analytical Frameworks
Classical Economics
Views cartels as detrimental to free market competition, preventing the invisible hand of the market from working efficiently.
Neoclassical Economics
Focuses on the implications of reduced competition due to cartels, predicting higher prices and reduced consumer surplus.
Keynesian Economics
Concerned with how cartels influence aggregate demand and employment levels, often advocating for regulatory intervention to protect economic stability.
Marxian Economics
Analyzes cartels within the context of capitalist exploitation and monopolistic practices.
Institutional Economics
Examines the role of legal and informal institutions in either enabling or curbing cartel behaviors.
Behavioral Economics
Studies the decision-making processes within firms that lead to the formation and maintenance of cartels, including insights from game theory.
Post-Keynesian Economics
Investigates the macroeconomic consequences of cartels, particularly the effects on income distribution and industrial dynamics.
Austrian Economics
Focuses on the role of entrepreneurial discovery and how cartels disrupt market signals and competition.
Development Economics
Evaluates the impact of international cartels on developing countries, often highlighting the adverse effects on local economies.
Monetarism
Assesses how cartel behavior can influence inflation and monetary stability by artificially manipulating prices.
Comparative Analysis
International cartels reduce global competition, unanimously influencing higher prices, comparable products, and market control. Antitrust laws in different jurisdictions respond to these effects with varying degrees of stringency, but the overarching goal remains to maintain free competition.
Case Studies
- OPEC: Engages in price fixing for petroleum output.
- Lysine Cartel: An infamous case from the 1990s involving price-fixing among global lysine producers.
- Vitamin Cartel: A widespread food supplement, vitamin producers colluded on prices and supply control in the late 20th century.
Suggested Books for Further Studies
- “The Richest Man Who Ever Lived” by Greg Steinmetz
- “Corporate Crime and Punishment” by Frank Pearce and Michael B.sieger
- “OPEC in a Shale Oil World” by Nader Sultan
Related Terms with Definitions
- Anti-Competitive Practice: Business practices that prevent or reduce competition in a market.
- Antitrust: Regulation that promotes competition and limits monopolistic practices.
- Cartel: An association of independent firms or entities formed to control production, pricing, and marketing practices in order to maximize combined profits.
