IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/indorg/v100y2025ics0167718725000256.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Optimal auctions with sequential arrival: Allowing for re-auction and resale

Author

Listed:
  • Xu, Xiaoshu

Abstract

The sequential arrival of bidders is a crucial aspect of real-world auctions, providing the auctioneer with incentives for re-auctioning and bidders with opportunities for resale. This paper investigates the optimality of sequential auctions, focusing on scenarios where the auctioneer can re-auction items and tap into potential future resale demand. Specifically, when bidders arrive in two batches, the auctioneer first conducts an English auction for the initial batch. If unsuccessful, the item is re-auctioned to both batches of bidders; otherwise, the winner can opt to resell to current and future bidders. I characterize the optimal sequential English auctions, noting that the auctioneer's belief about the value distribution of the first batch is necessarily limited after the initial auction fails. The findings demonstrate that, on the optimal reserve price path, the first batch always retains a positive winning probability in the re-auction. Furthermore, I identify conditions under which resale does not occur in equilibrium due to a high optimal reserve price in the initial auction. Thus, when the auctioneer can set optimal reserve prices and access resale demand, resale can be implicitly prohibited. These results provide important policy implications for auctions in both the private and public sectors.

Suggested Citation

  • Xu, Xiaoshu, 2025. "Optimal auctions with sequential arrival: Allowing for re-auction and resale," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:indorg:v:100:y:2025:i:c:s0167718725000256
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijindorg.2025.103158
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167718725000256
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ijindorg.2025.103158?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

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Haile, Philip A., 2000. "Partial Pooling at the Reserve Price in Auctions with Resale Opportunities," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 33(2), pages 231-248, November.
    2. Johannes Hörner & Larry Samuelson, 2011. "Managing Strategic Buyers," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 119(3), pages 379-425.
    3. Skreta, Vasiliki, 2015. "Optimal auction design under non-commitment," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 159(PB), pages 854-890.
    4. Isa Hafalir & Vijay Krishna, 2008. "Asymmetric Auctions with Resale," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(1), pages 87-112, March.
    5. Rod Garratt & Thomas Tröger, 2006. "Speculation in Standard Auctions with Resale," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 74(3), pages 753-769, May.
    6. Marco Pagnozzi, 2007. "Bidding to lose? Auctions with resale," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 38(4), pages 1090-1112, December.
    7. Haile, Philip A., 2003. "Auctions with private uncertainty and resale opportunities," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 108(1), pages 72-110, January.
    8. Charles Zhoucheng Zheng, 2002. "Optimal Auction with Resale," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 70(6), pages 2197-2224, November.
    9. Garratt, Rodney & Georganas, Sotiris, 2021. "Auctions with speculators: An experimental study," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 256-270.
    10. Lawrence Ausubel & Peter Cramton, 2004. "Vickrey auctions with reserve pricing," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 23(3), pages 493-505, March.
    11. Simon Board & Andrzej Skrzypacz, 2016. "Revenue Management with Forward-Looking Buyers," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 124(4), pages 1046-1087.
    12. Lawrence M. Ausubel & Peter Cramton, 1998. "The Optimality of Being Efficient," Papers of Peter Cramton 98wpoe, University of Maryland, Department of Economics - Peter Cramton, revised 18 Jun 1999.
    13. Gabriel Carroll & Ilya Segal, 2019. "Robustly Optimal Auctions with Unknown Resale Opportunities," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 86(4), pages 1527-1555.
    14. Giacomo Calzolari & Alessandro Pavan, 2006. "Monopoly with resale," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 37(2), pages 362-375, June.
    15. Zhang, Jun & Wang, Ruqu, 2013. "Optimal mechanism design with resale via bargaining," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 148(5), pages 2096-2123.
    16. Lebrun, Bernard, 1999. "First Price Auctions in the Asymmetric N Bidder Case," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 40(1), pages 125-142, February.
    17. Roger B. Myerson, 1981. "Optimal Auction Design," Mathematics of Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 6(1), pages 58-73, February.
    18. Qingmin Liu & Konrad Mierendorff & Xianwen Shi & Weijie Zhong, 2019. "Auctions with Limited Commitment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 109(3), pages 876-910, March.
    19. Rodney J. Garratt & Thomas Trˆger & Charles Z. Zheng, 2009. "Collusion via Resale," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 77(4), pages 1095-1136, July.
    20. Lebrun, Bernard, 2012. "Optimality and the English and second-price auctions with resale," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 75(2), pages 731-751.
    21. Giacomo Calzolari & Alessandro Pavan, 2006. "Monopoly with Resale," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 37(2), pages 362-375, Summer.
    22. Baisa, Brian & Burkett, Justin, 2020. "Discriminatory price auctions with resale and optimal quantity caps," Theoretical Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 15(1), January.
    23. Xu, Xiaoshu & Levin, Dan & Ye, Lixin, 2013. "Auctions with entry and resale," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 92-105.
    24. Xiaogang Che & Tilman Klumpp, 2023. "Auctions versus sequential mechanisms when resale is allowed," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 75(4), pages 1207-1245, May.
    25. McAfee, R. Preston & Vincent, Daniel, 1997. "Sequentially Optimal Auctions," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 246-276, February.
    26. Vasiliki Skreta, 2006. "Sequentially Optimal Mechanisms -super-1," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 73(4), pages 1085-1111.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Loertscher, Simon & Marx, Leslie M., 2017. "Auctions with bid credits and resale," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 58-90.
    2. Xiaogang Che & Tilman Klumpp, 2023. "Auctions versus sequential mechanisms when resale is allowed," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 75(4), pages 1207-1245, May.
    3. Kaplan, Todd R. & Zamir, Shmuel, 2015. "Advances in Auctions," Handbook of Game Theory with Economic Applications,, Elsevier.
    4. Bernard Lebrun, 2008. "First-Price, Second-Price, and English Auctions with Resale," Working Papers 2008_06, York University, Department of Economics.
    5. Lorentziadis, Panos L., 2016. "Optimal bidding in auctions from a game theory perspective," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 248(2), pages 347-371.
    6. Celik, Gorkem & Yilankaya, Okan, 2017. "Resale in second-price auctions with costly participation," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 148-174.
    7. Bernard Lebrun, 2010. "First‐price auctions with resale and with outcomes robust to bid disclosure," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 41(1), pages 165-178, March.
    8. Hannu Vartiainen, 2003. "Auction Design without Commitment," Working Papers 2003.24, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    9. Isa Hafalir & Musab Kurnaz, 2019. "Discriminatory auctions with resale," Economic Theory Bulletin, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 7(2), pages 173-189, December.
    10. Che, XiaoGang & Lee, Peter & Yang, Yibai, 2013. "The impact of resale on entry in second price auctions," Mathematical Social Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 66(2), pages 163-168.
    11. Matros, Alexander & Zapechelnyuk, Andriy, 2011. "Optimal mechanisms for an auction mediator," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 426-431, July.
    12. Xiaoyong Cao & Yunxia Yang & Siru Li, 2023. "Resale in second‐price auctions with private entry," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 44(6), pages 3269-3276, September.
    13. Marco Pagnozzi, 2007. "Should Speculators Be Welcomed in Auctions?," CSEF Working Papers 176, Centre for Studies in Economics and Finance (CSEF), University of Naples, Italy.
    14. Filiz-Ozbay, Emel & Lopez-Vargas, Kristian & Ozbay, Erkut Y., 2015. "Multi-object auctions with resale: Theory and experiment," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 89(C), pages 1-16.
    15. Weiye Cheny, 2018. "Optimal Mechanism Design with Resale: An Ex-Ante Price Default Model," Discussion Papers in Economics and Business 18-24, Osaka University, Graduate School of Economics.
    16. Alexander Matros & Andriy Zapechelnyuk, 2008. "Optimal fees in internet auctions," Review of Economic Design, Springer;Society for Economic Design, vol. 12(3), pages 155-163, September.
    17. Sui, Yong, 2006. "All-pay auctions with resale," MPRA Paper 11463, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised Oct 2007.
    18. Garratt, Rodney & Georganas, Sotiris, 2021. "Auctions with speculators: An experimental study," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 256-270.
    19. Zhang, Jun, 2013. "Revenue maximizing with return policy when buyers have uncertain valuations," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 31(5), pages 452-461.
    20. Zhang, Jun & Wang, Ruqu, 2013. "Optimal mechanism design with resale via bargaining," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 148(5), pages 2096-2123.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • D44 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Auctions
    • C7 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Game Theory and Bargaining Theory
    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design

    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:indorg:v:100:y:2025:i:c:s0167718725000256. 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/inca/505551 .

    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.