IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/enepol/v126y2019icp223-237.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Price transmission in the presence of a vertically integrated dominant firm: Evidence from the gasoline market

Author

Listed:
  • Farkas, Richárd
  • Yontcheva, Biliana

Abstract

The present paper provides an empirical examination of cost pass-through on a market with a vertically integrated firm which has substantial market power in wholesale and faces competition in retail. Our investigation focuses on gasoline pricing in Hungary, where a court-case against the dominant firm on the market provides us with detailed evidence regarding the price-setting behavior of the vertically integrated agent. We find that when market power is stronger at the wholesale level, the company is likely to raise prices in response to cost increases faster than it adjusts them downwards in case of cost decreases on the wholesale market. This process is known as “asymmetric cost pass-through”. Our findings suggest that regulatory efforts on the market should not only encompass differences in firm mark-ups between franchisees of the firm and competitors in order to prevent foreclosure, but should also seek to evaluate the wholesale price margins applied to all firms. We supplement our results with an analysis of the behavior of the firm after an investigation into its pricing behavior and find that pass-through asymmetry decreases substantially on the wholesale level in the period after the investigation.

Suggested Citation

  • Farkas, Richárd & Yontcheva, Biliana, 2019. "Price transmission in the presence of a vertically integrated dominant firm: Evidence from the gasoline market," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 126(C), pages 223-237.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:126:y:2019:i:c:p:223-237
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2018.11.016
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301421518307390
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.enpol.2018.11.016?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Gaudin, Germain, 2016. "Pass-through, vertical contracts, and bargains," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 1-4.
    2. Giliola Frey & Matteo Manera, 2007. "Econometric Models Of Asymmetric Price Transmission," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(2), pages 349-415, April.
    3. Polemis, Michael L. & Fotis, Panagiotis N., 2014. "The taxation effect on gasoline price asymmetry nexus: Evidence from both sides of the Atlantic," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 225-233.
    4. Remer, Marc, 2015. "An empirical investigation of the determinants of asymmetric pricing," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 46-56.
    5. Green, Edward J & Porter, Robert H, 1984. "Noncooperative Collusion under Imperfect Price Information," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 52(1), pages 87-100, January.
    6. Michael Noel, 2009. "Do retail gasoline prices respond asymmetrically to cost shocks? The influence of Edgeworth Cycles," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 40(3), pages 582-595, September.
    7. Colin Bermingham & Derry O'Brien, 2011. "Testing for Asymmetric Pricing Behaviour in Irish and UK Petrol and Diesel Markets," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 3), pages 1-26.
    8. Joakim Westerlund, 2007. "Testing for Error Correction in Panel Data," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 69(6), pages 709-748, December.
    9. Jeremy A. Verlinda, 2008. "Do Rockets Rise Faster And Feathers Fall Slower In An Atmosphere Of Local Market Power? Evidence From The Retail Gasoline Market," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(3), pages 581-612, September.
    10. Oladunjoye, Olusegun, 2008. "Market structure and price adjustment in the U.S. wholesale gasoline markets," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 937-961, May.
    11. Matthew S. Lewis, 2011. "Asymmetric Price Adjustment and Consumer Search: An Examination of the Retail Gasoline Market," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(2), pages 409-449, June.
    12. M. Hashem Pesaran, 2021. "General diagnostic tests for cross-sectional dependence in panels," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 60(1), pages 13-50, January.
    13. Jushan Bai & Serena Ng, 2004. "A PANIC Attack on Unit Roots and Cointegration," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 72(4), pages 1127-1177, July.
    14. Bagnai, Alberto & Mongeau Ospina, Christian Alexander, 2015. "Long- and short-run price asymmetries and hysteresis in the Italian gasoline market," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 41-50.
    15. Sam Peltzman, 2000. "Prices Rise Faster than They Fall," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 108(3), pages 466-502, June.
    16. Bacon, Robert W., 1991. "Rockets and feathers: the asymmetric speed of adjustment of UK retail gasoline prices to cost changes," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 13(3), pages 211-218, July.
    17. Liu, Ming-Hua & Margaritis, Dimitris & Tourani-Rad, Alireza, 2010. "Is there an asymmetry in the response of diesel and petrol prices to crude oil price changes? Evidence from New Zealand," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(4), pages 926-932, July.
    18. Lance J. Bachmeier & James M. Griffin, 2003. "New Evidence on Asymmetric Gasoline Price Responses," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 85(3), pages 772-776, August.
    19. Severin Borenstein & A. Colin Cameron & Richard Gilbert, 1997. "Do Gasoline Prices Respond Asymmetrically to Crude Oil Price Changes?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 112(1), pages 305-339.
    20. Engle, Robert & Granger, Clive, 2015. "Co-integration and error correction: Representation, estimation, and testing," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 39(3), pages 106-135.
    21. Csorba, Gergely & Koltay, Gábor & Farkas, Dávid, 2009. "Árak és koncentráció a magyar kiskereskedelmi üzemanyagpiacon [Prices and concentration on the Hungarian retail market for motor fuels]," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(12), pages 1088-1109.
    22. Balaguer, Jacint & Ripollés, Jordi, 2012. "Testing for price response asymmetries in the Spanish fuel market. New evidence from daily data," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(6), pages 2066-2071.
    23. Polemis, Michael L. & Fotis, Panagiotis N., 2013. "Do gasoline prices respond asymmetrically in the euro zone area? Evidence from cointegrated panel data analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 425-433.
    24. Asplund, Marcus & Eriksson, Rickard & Friberg, Richard, 2000. " Price Adjustments by a Gasoline Retail Chain," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 102(1), pages 101-121, March.
    25. Gergely Csorba & Gabor Koltay & David Farkas, 2011. "Separating the ex post effects of mergers: an analysis of structural changes on the Hungarian retail gasoline market," CERS-IE WORKING PAPERS 1118, Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies.
    26. Andrew Eckert, 2013. "Empirical Studies Of Gasoline Retailing: A Guide To The Literature," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 140-166, February.
    27. Honaker, James & King, Gary & Blackwell, Matthew, 2011. "Amelia II: A Program for Missing Data," Journal of Statistical Software, Foundation for Open Access Statistics, vol. 45(i07).
    28. Matthew Chesnes, 2016. "Asymmetric Pass-Through in U.S. Gasoline Prices," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 1).
    29. Robert A. Ritz, 2015. "The Simple Economics of Asymmetric Cost Pass-Through," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 1515, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    30. Marcus Asplund & Rickard Eriksson & Richard Friberg, 2000. "Price Adjustments by a Gasoline Retail Chain," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 102(1), pages 101-121, March.
    31. Fotis, Panagiotis & Polemis, Michael, 2018. "The impact of market deregulation on milk price: A dynamic panel data approach," MPRA Paper 86542, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    32. Mariano Tappata, 2009. "Rockets and feathers: Understanding asymmetric pricing," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 40(4), pages 673-687, December.
    33. Sofronis Clerides, 2010. "Retail Fuel Price Response to Oil Price Shocks in EU Countries," Cyprus Economic Policy Review, University of Cyprus, Economics Research Centre, vol. 4(1), pages 25-45, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Figus, Gioele & McGregor, Peter G. & Swales, J. Kim & Turner, Karen, 2020. "Do sticky energy prices impact the time paths of rebound effects associated with energy efficiency actions?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    2. Feng, Fenling & Zhang, Jiaqi & Liu, Chengguang, 2023. "Integrated pricing mechanism of China Railway Express whole-process logistics based on the Stackelberg game," Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, Elsevier, vol. 609(C).
    3. Raúl Bajo-Buenestado & Miguel Ángel Borrella-Mas, 2022. "The Heterogeneous Tax Pass-Through Under Different Vertical Relationships," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 132(645), pages 1684-1708.
    4. Scott Parrott, 2023. "Comparing Price Transmissions between a High Blend Ethanol Fuel and a Conventional Fuel: An Application of Seemingly Unrelated Regressions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-14, November.
    5. Sylwester Bejger, 2021. "Competition in a Wholesale Fuel Market—The Impact of the Structural Changes Caused by COVID-19," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-26, July.
    6. Palazzi, Rafael Baptista & Meira, Erick & Klotzle, Marcelo Cabus, 2022. "The sugar-ethanol-oil nexus in Brazil: Exploring the pass-through of international commodity prices to national fuel prices," Journal of Commodity Markets, Elsevier, vol. 28(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Deltas, George & Polemis, Michael, 2020. "Estimating retail gasoline price dynamics: The effects of sample characteristics and research design," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    2. Polemis, Michael L. & Fotis, Panagiotis N., 2014. "The taxation effect on gasoline price asymmetry nexus: Evidence from both sides of the Atlantic," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 225-233.
    3. Perdiguero-García, Jordi, 2013. "Symmetric or asymmetric oil prices? A meta-analysis approach," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 389-397.
    4. Ederington, Louis H. & Fernando, Chitru S. & Hoelscher, Seth A. & Lee, Thomas K. & Linn, Scott C., 2019. "A review of the evidence on the relation between crude oil prices and petroleum product prices," Journal of Commodity Markets, Elsevier, vol. 13(C), pages 1-15.
    5. Katarzyna Leszkiewicz-Kędzior & Aleksander Welfe, 2014. "Asymmetric Price Adjustments in the Fuel Market," Central European Journal of Economic Modelling and Econometrics, Central European Journal of Economic Modelling and Econometrics, vol. 6(2), pages 105-127, June.
    6. Kristoufek, Ladislav & Lunackova, Petra, 2015. "Rockets and feathers meet Joseph: Reinvestigating the oil–gasoline asymmetry on the international markets," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 1-8.
    7. Jonathan E. Ogbuabor & Anthony Orji & Gladys C. Aneke & Manasseh O. Charles, 2019. "Did the global financial crisis alter the oil–gasoline price relationship?," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 57(4), pages 1171-1200, October.
    8. Jordi Perdiguero-García, 2010. "“Symmetric or asymmetric gasoline prices? A metaanalysis approach”," IREA Working Papers 201013, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Nov 2010.
    9. Chua, Chew Lian & De Silva, Chamaka & Suardi, Sandy, 2017. "Do petrol prices increase faster than they fall in market disequilibria?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 135-146.
    10. Palencia-González, Francisco J. & Navío-Marco, Julio & Juberías-Cáceres, Gema, 2020. "Analysis of brand influence in the rockets and feathers effect using disaggregated data," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 52(C).
    11. Yufeng Chen & Guobin Huang & Lihua Ma, 2017. "Rockets and Feathers: The Asymmetric Effect between China’s Refined Oil Prices and International Crude Oil Prices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-19, March.
    12. Sylvain Benoît & Yannick Lucotte & Sébastien Ringuedé, 2019. "Competition and price stickiness: Evidence from the French retail gasoline market," Working Papers hal-02292332, HAL.
    13. Noel, Michael D. & Qiang, Hongjie, 2019. "The role of information in retail gasoline price dispersion," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 173-187.
    14. Antoniou, Fabio & Fiocco, Raffaele & Guo, Dongyu, 2017. "Asymmetric price adjustments: A supply side approach," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 335-360.
    15. Moutinho, Victor & Bento, João Paulo Cerdeira & Hajko, Vladimír, 2017. "Price relationships between crude oil and transport fuels in the European Union before and after the 2008 financial crisis," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 76-83.
    16. Joshua Sherman & Avi Weiss, 2015. "Price Response, Asymmetric Information and Competition," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 125(589), pages 2077-2115, December.
    17. Riemer P. Faber, 2015. "More New Evidence on Asymmetric Gasoline Price Responses," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 3).
    18. José María Martín-Moreno & Rafaela Pérez & Jesús Ruiz, 2019. "Evidence about asymmetric price transmission in the main European fuel markets: from TAR-ECM to Markov-switching approach," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 56(4), pages 1383-1412, April.
    19. Rahman, Mohammad Chhiddikur, 2020. "Welfare Impact of Asymmetric Price Transmission on Bangladesh Rice Consumers," EconStor Theses, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, number 242248, July.
    20. Sylwester Bejger, 2021. "Competition in a Wholesale Fuel Market—The Impact of the Structural Changes Caused by COVID-19," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-26, July.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Gasoline market; Cost pass-through; Dominant firm; Vertical integration;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L11 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms
    • L12 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Monopoly; Monopolization Strategies
    • L22 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Organization and Market Structure
    • L40 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies - - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:126:y:2019:i:c:p:223-237. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/enpol .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.