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Testing the Boundaries of the Double Auction

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We report boundary experiments testing the robustness of price convergence in double auction markets for non-durable goods in which there is extreme earnings inequality at the competitive equilibrium (CE). Following up on a conjecture by Smith (1980), we test whether the well-known equilibrating power of the double auction institution is robust to the presence of complete information about traders' values and costs and the presence of symmetric market power. Contra Smith's conjecture, we find that complete information is insufficient to impede convergence to CE prices; however, introducing market power consistently causes prices to deviate from the CE, whether or not subjects possess complete information. Our design highlights the value of boundary experiments in understanding how market institutions shape behavior, and our findings help delineate the limits of the double auction institution to generate competitive outcomes.

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  • Erik O. Kimbrough & Andrew Smyth, 2017. "Testing the Boundaries of the Double Auction," Discussion Papers dp17-05, Department of Economics, Simon Fraser University.
    • Handle: RePEc:sfu:sfudps:dp17-05
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    1. Aleksejus Kononovicius & Julius Ruseckas, 2018. "Order book model with herd behavior exhibiting long-range memory," Papers 1809.02772, arXiv.org, revised Apr 2019.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    double auction; market power; institutions; information; experimental economics;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C92 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Laboratory, Group Behavior
    • D02 - Microeconomics - - General - - - Institutions: Design, Formation, Operations, and Impact
    • D43 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Oligopoly and Other Forms of Market Imperfection
    • D44 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Auctions
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets

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