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Coate on Unilateral Effects at the FTC
FTC economist Malcolm Coate has posted Unilateral Effects Under the Guidelines: Models, Merits and Merger Policy to SSRN. Here’s the abstract: This paper models FTC unilateral effects merger policy using a broad sample of 153 investigations undertaken between 1993 and 2005. Standard unilateral effects analysis proposes a range of models for competitive effects. A review ... Coate on Unilateral Effects at the FTC
Antitrust and Health Care
Barak Richman (Duke) and James Blumstein (Vanderbilt) have an interesting exchange at PENNumbra, University of Pennsylvania School of Law’s online forum for debate surrounding scholarship in the U. Penn. L. Rev. Here’s the abstract from Professor Richman’s article: Courts reviewing proposed mergers of nonprofit hospitals have too often abandoned the bedrock principles of antitrust law, ... Antitrust and Health Care
Financial Crisis Explained
See here (it’s from February, but I hadn’t seen it until it was forwarded to me today so it may be a waste of your time BW).
Who Is Going to Jail For All of This?
David Zaring cuts to the chase.
The Price of Gas in Antlers, OK
From the DOJ: A federal grand jury in Oklahoma returned a one-count indictment today charging Kwik-Chek Food Stores Inc., a Texas-based convenience store company, and one of its agents, Jarrod “Judd” Thomas, with conspiring to fix the price of retail gasoline and diesel fuel sold in Antlers, Okla. The indictment, filed today in the U.S. ... The Price of Gas in Antlers, OK
Now that the Bailout Has Failed, How About Bebchuk’s Plan?
I’ve avoided saying anything at all about the bailout because (1) I’m not an expert on banking, finance, etc. and (2) events are moving so fast I can’t keep up with the latest proposal. Nonetheless, since the bailout bill has just failed, this might be an opportune time to consider an alternative to the plan ... Now that the Bailout Has Failed, How About Bebchuk’s Plan?
Cartel Enforcement and the Election
From an excellent short article by Dan McInnis (Akin Gump) on the potential impact of the election on cartel policy in Global Competition Policy: Antitrust policy has played little role in the election. Indeed, at least for cartel policy, there may be little to differentiate the candidates. Given that both U.S. political parties as well ... Cartel Enforcement and the Election
Questions on the Bailout
From Peter Klein: Over and over during the last week we’ve been told that unless Congress, the Treasury, and the Fed “take”bold action,” credit markets will freeze, equity values will plummet, small businesses and homeowners will be wiped out, and, ultimately, the entire economy will crash. Such pronouncements are issued boldly, with a sort of ... Questions on the Bailout
The Costs of International Antitrust Enforcement and Superficial Convergence
There is an interesting profile on Intel in the WSJ. While the profile focuses on some of the technological and competitive challenges facing Intel and CEO Paul Otellini, the CEO mentions the proliferation of antitrust laws across the globe, and the uncertainty associated with regulatory costs in such an environment, as one of the major potential impediments facing ... The Costs of International Antitrust Enforcement and Superficial Convergence
A Separate FTC Section 2 Report?
[UPDATE: I misread Kroes’ speech in a rush. As a loyal blog reader points out, Kroes was obviously referring to the European Commission’s release of its own report, not the Federal Trade Commission. Oops.]. I’ve discussed some problems with the FTC statement in response to DOJ’s release of the Section 2 Report. In particular, I criticized some ... A Separate FTC Section 2 Report?
A Open Letter From Steve Horwitz
To his friends on the left on accepting and understanding the role that regulation has played in the current financial mess despite calls to chalk the whole thing up to knee-jerk ideological deregulatory policies. Greg Mankiw also calls out Senator Obama for offering a distorted version of history in the Presidential debate.
AIG/NY Fed Credit Agreement
available here. From the 8-K: On September 22, 2008, American International Group, Inc. (“AIG”) entered into an $85 billion revolving credit facility (the “Credit Facility”) and a Guarantee and Pledge Agreement (the “Pledge Agreement”) with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (“NY Fed”). The Credit Facility has a two year term and bears interest ... AIG/NY Fed Credit Agreement
