HORIZONTAL MERGERS IN THE PRESENCE OF CAPACITY CONSTRAINTS

C-Tier
Journal: Economic Inquiry
Year: 2018
Volume: 56
Issue: 2
Pages: 1346-1356

Authors (2)

Zhiqi Chen (not in RePEc) Gang Li (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

0.503 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 0.5x C-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

We examine a merger between two competitors in a Bertrand‐Edgeworth model. We find that the effects of merger depend on the tightness of capacity constraints. The combination of two firms has no price effect if and only if the capacity constraints of all firms are binding both before and after the merger. However, a merger may turn a binding capacity constraint into a slack one, which results in higher prices. In an industry where excess capacity drives the premerger prices of all firms to the marginal cost, a merger may cause prices to rise even though aggregate capacity remains constant. (JEL L13, L40)

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:bla:ecinqu:v:56:y:2018:i:2:p:1346-1356
Journal Field
General
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-25