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Farmgate prices, retail prices, and supermarkets' pricing decisions: An integrated approach

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  • Carlo Russo
  • Rachael Goodhue

Abstract

Agricultural and food prices exhibit several empirical regularities that are not easily explained by conventional perfect competition or market power models, including asymmetric price transmission, food price rigidity, farmgate price volatility, and low correlation between prices at different stages of the supply chain. We focus on this set of market features and conclude that they can be the outcome of a competition model where supermarket use promotions to strategically attract basket shoppers. We present a numerical simulation to show that complex price patterns including all the features indicated above can be obtained from a general store traffic competition model without the need of introducing ad hoc assumptions. [EconLit citations: Q11, Q13].

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  • Carlo Russo & Rachael Goodhue, 2018. "Farmgate prices, retail prices, and supermarkets' pricing decisions: An integrated approach," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 34(1), pages 24-43, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:agribz:v:34:y:2018:i:1:p:24-43
    DOI: 10.1002/agr.21530
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    2. Yizao Liu & Xuan Chen & Adam N. Rabinowitz, 2019. "The role of retail market power and state regulations in the heterogeneity of farm‐retail price transmission of private label and branded products," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 50(1), pages 91-99, January.
    3. Alessandro Bonanno & Carlo Russo & Luisa Menapace, 2018. "Market power and bargaining in agrifood markets: A review of emerging topics and tools," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 34(1), pages 6-23, December.

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