Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes? or Measuring and Evaluating the Effectiveness of Competition Enforcement

Summary  This article surveys, discusses and classifies methods for ex-post evaluation of the efficiency of competition authorities: court appeals, peer reviews, case studies, event studies, (authorities’ own) bottom-up calculations of consumer gains, deadweight-loss estimates, cross-country panel studies etc. Based on empirical estimates from other types of studies and on a simple oligopoly model, one conclusion is that many bottom-up calculations are based on exaggerated estimates of gains from cartel enforcement, relative to those from merger enforcement. Another conclusion is that authorities’ ex-post self evaluations are of limited value, relative to external evaluations. “Who watches the guardians?”, by Juvenal, 2nd century Roman poet and critic.     

Measuring the Economic Effects of Competition Law Enforcement

Summary  Together with a move from a rules-based legal approach to a more economic approach in competition cases, the economic effects of competition law enforcement have received increasing attention. Measuring these effects is important for external accountability of the Competition Authority, for quality control of its decisions and for evaluating the effectiveness of the competition law. This raises many issues in measurement, including the choice of counterfactual, the choice of effects to be measured, and the proper use of available data. The papers in this Special Issue of De Economist discuss these and related issues, based on a broad range of experience in competition law enforcement.      

The creation of big business in the Swedish brewing industry during the aftermath of the Second World War

Abstract

Before the First World War, the Swedish brewing industry was organised into cartels that fixed prices and established distribution areas. During the inter-war years, the major combines in the three biggest cities strengthened their position, since they controlled the market in the most populated areas. Because of the agreements within the brewing cartel Bryggeriidkareförbundet, there was hardly any competition among the breweries and the only way to expand the business was to buy cartel-associated smaller breweries in the fixed ‘natural distribution area’. When the cartel ceased to exist in the mid 1950s, the agreements among AB Stockholms Bryggerier in Stockholm (StB), AB Pripp & Lyckholm in Göteborg (P&L) and AB Malmö Förenade Bryggerier in Malmö (MfB) were informally maintained. They managed to expand in their old distribution areas and beyond, but there was no interference in each other's home market.

This article examines why and how these agreements finally came to an end and the effects of the increased competition. The so-called ‘beer war’ between StB and P&L during the early sixties paved the way for negotiations, which in the end led to a merger of the breweries and a new big combine – Pripps – was created. We take up questions related to the formation of the company, its market expansion, the diversification and other organisational strategies. Pripps's monopolistic position on the Swedish market and the institutional pressure that followed started a process leading in the end to a reorganisation and a holding company, PRIBO, was formed in the early 1970s. A few years later the majority of PRIBO's brewing division (Pripps) was bought by the Swedish state and the rest of PRIBO was sold to one of the upcoming holding companies in Sweden during that time – Beijer Invest.     

Land ownership in the nordic countries

Abstract

The article examines the relationship between the Norwegian State and international cartels and trusts in the interwar years. In this period, Norway was at the forefront with regard to implementing legislation regulating cartels, yet the legislation was not an antitrust legislation in the modern sense. It was aimed not only at protecting consumer interests, but more importantly at defending domestic businesses against foreign monopolies and cartels. In the article we examine how the Norwegian authorities interacted with international cartels and trusts in seven different cases in the interwar period. The study shows that although there was a deep seated scepticism towards concentration of market power in Norway, cartels received support from the Norwegian government when they were deemed to be beneficial to Norwegian economic interests. The legislation was used to foster the development of domestic cartels, while at the same time it was employed as a tool to limit the operations of foreign cartels and trusts.     

论执法人员在执法活动中的失误及其补救

执法人员在执法过程中造成的失误 ,给公民、法人和社会组织的合法权益造成了损失。究其原因是多方面的 ,既有主观的 ,也有客观的。主观方面表现为执法人员素质低下 ,对法律、法规的理解不透 ;客观方面表现在法律不健全及各方面的干扰 ,造成了执法方面的失误。因此 ,就要求我们对执法人员造成的失误要及时补救 ,这样做才能体现社会主义法制的优越性 ,树立执法机关的形象 ,维护公民、法人和社会组织的合法权不受侵害     

Study on the Harmonization of IPRs and Antitrust Laws

Antitrust law prohibits monopolies while intellectual property law grants legal monopolies. But this protection is not unlimited. Antitrust law imposes important restrictions to ensure that inventors are not overstepping their boundaries by restricting competition. This paper tries to answer the most debated question of the day： how should the laws of antitrust and intellectual property work together to achieve their common goal of enhancing social welfare.     

Enforcement,Socioeconomic Diversity,and Tax Filing Compliance in the United States

In this article, we examine the determinants of tax filing compliance in the United States. We use county‐level data on non‐filing rates for the tax year 2000, obtained directly from the Internal Revenue Service. We include explanatory variables identified in the “rational compliance” framework, including an enforcement index against identified non‐filers, the audit rate of filers, and the average penalty rate for both filers and non‐filers. We also examine the role of socioeconomic diversity on tax compliance, testing whether within‐county heterogeneity in household income, language, race, and religion can help explain variation in non‐filing rates. We find that non‐filing is increasing with heterogeneity by race, although not by income or language, and that non‐filing is decreasing with heterogeneity by religious membership. As for enforcement variables, we find that non‐filing rates tend to fall with the enforcement index. Other variables have somewhat mixed results.     

反垄断与经济发展质量——基于《反垄断法》实施的经验证据

竞争是市场运行的核心,有效发挥市场职能是推动经济发展的关键。文章借助《反垄断法》实施的准自然实验,研究发现《反垄断法》实施后,企业的全要素生产率提高,但是与竞争企业相比,垄断企业增加的全要素生产率显著更少。机制检验表明,《反垄断法》促使垄断企业削弱要素投入影响全要素生产率,具体表现为垄断企业的研发投入和研发部门员工比例下降、员工薪酬和高学历员工比例下降、并购金额降低。上述影响仅在国有企业中显著。进一步分析发现,《反垄断法》也会影响垄断企业的产品市场表现和资本市场表现。文章研究表明《反垄断法》不仅能够提高企业经营效率、促进经济增长,更能够打破垄断企业的优势地位、助力经济均衡发展。文章为评价《反垄断法》实施效果补充了宏观层面的经验证据,也有助于认识政府在弥补市场失灵中的重要角色,为如何充分发挥市场的资源配置功能带来启示。     

Assessing Consumer Gains from a Drug Price Control Policy in the United States

We use national data from 1960 to 2000 to estimate the demand for pharmaceuticals in the United States. We then simulate consumer surplus gains from a hypothetical drug price control policy that would have limited drug price increases to the rate of inflation from 1981 to 2000. Using a range of values for the real interest rate, coinsurance rate, and own-price elasticity of demand, we find that the consumer surplus gains from this policy equal $472 billion by the end of 2000. According to a recent study, that same policy would have led to 198 fewer new drugs being brought to the U.S. market. Therefore, the average social opportunity cost per drug developed during this period was approximately $2.4 billion. Research on the value of pharmaceuticals suggests that the social benefits of a new drug are far greater than this estimate. Hence, drug price controls could do more harm than good.     

Assessing the Impact of Antitrust Intervention by the Italian Competition Authority

Summary  In the last 2 years the Italian Competition Authority conducted several impact analyses, two of which – regarding baby milk and fresh milk markets – are presented here. A few lessons can be learned from these analyses. First, uncovering a cartel and imposing fines by themselves do not necessarily interrupt the effects of the anticompetitive behaviour. Second, by disclosing new information to the general public, an investigation can make the market more transparent so as to increase the probability of a successful entry. Third, in complex markets, remedies that have been imposed in clearing mergers may work out in unexpected ways. Fourth, mergers involving nationwide sellers should not be assessed only by watching the local relevant markets, as the incentive structure for coordination can be modified also at national level. Fifth, it seems advisable to appoint an independent trustee when divestures are imposed. Italian Competition Authority. The views expressed in the article are those of the author and do not involve the responsibility of the Italian Authority. I want to thank Fabio Massimo Esposito and an anonymous referee for comments and observations. All remaining errors are my own.     

The Optimal Enforcement of a Finance-Constrained Immigration Law

We extend the Bucci and Tenorio (1996) model of illegal immigration by constructing a two-country, one-good, two-factor model, and use a Cobb-Douglas production function to analyze political issues not considered in their work. We consider the case where capital is immobile between the two countries, as well as the case in which capital is mobile. Our main result is that the host country's government can, under some circumstances, optimally enforce employer sanctions in order to maximize the host country's welfare under both capital mobility and immobility.     

关于检察机关提升执法公信力的思考

检察机关公信力体现的是公众对检察制度的实施、检察权的运用过程和造成的结果的心理感受,是公众对检察机关办理各类案件的信服度,同时在一定程度上也是考核检察机关检察工作能否让人民群众满意的重要标准。尤其是对处于与人民群众打交道的第一战线的基层检察机关而言,执法公信力的提升不仅有助于推动全国检察事业的发展,而且对构建良好的党群、检群关系也有重要意义。     

The Deterrent Effect of UK Competition Enforcement

Summary  The paper briefly reviews previous studies of the deterrent effect of competition enforcement. It then describes the key findings of a recent report commissioned by the Office of Fair Trading on the scale of the deterrent effect of merger control and competition law enforcement in the UK. The research, which was based on in-depth interviews and phone surveys with senior competition lawyers and large UK companies also indicated which sanctions may be more effective at deterring anti-competitive behaviour and provided suggestions for improving deterrence. The paper discusses a number of policy issues raised by the research’s findings. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of the OFT or Deloitte. This paper was prepared for the October 2007 workshop on Measuring the Effects of Competition Law Enforcement, organized by the Netherlands Competition Authority.     

Assessing foreign direct investment relationships between China,Japan, and the United States

China has received enormous inflows of foreign direct investment (FDI) in recent years, including significant flows from Japan and the US. We examine these investment flows in detail to gain perspectives on their relative importance for the three countries involved. We also analyze the industrial composition of FDI flows over time. American FDI flows to China have been less concentrated in manufacturing than average for investors in China while Japan's FDI flows have been much more concentrated in manufacturing, particularly in transport, electrical and machinery industries in recent years. Using survey data from American and Japanese affiliates, we compare the employment patterns and sales destinations of American and Japanese affiliates in China. We find a much higher degree of export-orientation for Japanese affiliates than American affiliates, with the latter tending to make the vast majority of their sales in the Chinese market. Over time, however, we find a tendency towards convergence in the sales destinations of Japanese and American affiliates.     

论国土资源执法监察效能建设

基于国土执法形势更加严峻的现状,分析其原因,倡议从政府体制、法律机制和土地执法内部体系等方面进行改革建设,增强土地执法监察效能,以保护国土资源,减少滥用耕地,促进并稳定房地产市场。     

环境核算在美国

20世纪60年代末70年代初,环境核算作为社会核算的一部分被提了出来。美国在环境核算方面是一个积极的先行者和参与者,经济分析局1992年开始着手建立“经济环境一体化卫星账户”。本文对美国的环境核算进行综述。     

基于任务压力的安全管理与遵章行为关系研究 /

文章基于安全氛围和系统理论,构建了安全生产和遵章行为系统动力学模型,模拟了不同任务压力情境下强化安全策略对员工遵章行为的影响效果。仿真结果表明,当生产任务规律增加时,管理层制定的强化安全等管理措施能显著促进遵章行为,基本能够实现减少危险事故次数、改善安全状况的目标;当生产任务随机变化时,强化安全的管理制度对遵章行为的有效影响被任务压力抵消,需要其他安全管理方法和手段作为补充以提升组织整体安全水平。     

Regime-Dependent Fiscal Multipliers in the United States

This paper proposes a regime-dependent model to estimate fiscal multipliers in the US. Output, consumption and investment are assumed to respond to tax and spending changes in a nonlinear manner. Fiscal multipliers are time-varying because their size and sign depend upon the state of the economy (upturns and downturns). Keynesian effects appear essentially during downturns, while anti-Keynesian effects are observed during expansions. Transfer payments contributes to a higher private consumption when they are given to consumers in bad times. Reducing taxes boosts consumption in good times. Investment responds positively to lower taxes during downturns, but negatively in the upturn regime. Our results thus suggest that Keynesian effects have been associated to expansionary policies during recessions, while anti-Keynesian effects were observed during expansions illustrating situations of expansionary fiscal consolidation. The effectiveness of fiscal positive impulses increases in downturns relative to upturns. A corollary is therefore that austerity measures during recessions would have detrimental effects on the GDP and its components.     

最低工资制度的执行力度和影响因素研究——以农村转移劳动力为例

文章利用2011年浙江省杭州市最低工资标准调整的契机,调查分析了新的工资标准实施前后最低工资制度在农村转移劳动力中的执行力度及其影响因素。研究发现,工资标准的提高使农村转移劳动力的最低工资标准执行力度由原先的80%降低到70%左右;最低工资制度在提升劳动者收入上发挥了一些效果。研究显示,企业性质、企业规模和企业所处的地理位置均是影响最低工资制度执行力度的因素;劳动者的人力资本水平也是影响执行力度的重要因素。文章认为,当前的最低工资制度存在着工资标准过低和执行力度不足的问题,大幅度削弱了该政策提升劳动者工资的作用。