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Buyer power with atomistic upstream entry: Can downstream consolidation increase production and welfare?

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  • Mérel, Pierre
  • Sexton, Richard J.

Abstract

This paper investigates the effects of buyer power on entry into an atomistic upstream market and economic welfare. Under reasonable market conditions, we show that industries with a few buyers induce more upstream entry than industries with a larger number of firms. In particular, monopsony can be more conducive to entry and lead to higher social welfare than more fragmented industry structures. This seeming paradox arises because a single buyer better internalizes the positive effects of entry on later-periods’ supply conditions than a collection of firms. This result is relevant in a number of market settings, including markets for specialized labor and processing markets for agricultural products.

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  • Mérel, Pierre & Sexton, Richard J., 2017. "Buyer power with atomistic upstream entry: Can downstream consolidation increase production and welfare?," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 259-293.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:indorg:v:50:y:2017:i:c:p:259-293
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijindorg.2016.11.002
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    6. Federica Di Marcantonio & Pavel Ciaian & Vicente Castellanos, 2018. "Unfair trading practices in the dairy farm sector: Evidence from selected EU regions," JRC Research Reports JRC112770, Joint Research Centre.
    7. Jinho Jung & Juan Sesmero & Ralph Siebert, 2022. "A structural estimation of spatial differentiation and market power in input procurement," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 104(2), pages 613-644, March.
    8. He, Xi, 2018. "Bigger Farms and Bigger Food Firms-The Agricultural Origin of Industrial Concentration in the Food Sector," 2018 Annual Meeting, August 5-7, Washington, D.C. 274206, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    9. Lukáš Čechura & Antonella Samoggia & Tinoush Jamali Jaghdani, 2024. "Concentration, market imperfections, and interbranch organization in the Italian processed tomato supply chain," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 55(4), pages 603-620, July.
    10. Liesbeth Colen & Zohra Bouamra-Mechemache & Victoria Daskalova & Kjersti Nes, 2020. "Retail alliances in the agricultural and food supply chain," JRC Research Reports JRC120271, Joint Research Centre.
    11. Swinnen, Johan & Kuijpers, Rob, 2019. "Value chain innovations for technology transfer in developing and emerging economies: Conceptual issues, typology, and policy implications," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 298-309.
    12. Hadachek, Jeffrey & Saitone, Tina L. & Sexton, Richard J. & Raszap Skorbiansky, Sharon & Thornsbury, Suzanne & Effland, Anne, 2022. "Organic Feed Grains and Livestock: Factors That Influence Outcomes in Thinly Traded Markets," USDA Miscellaneous 319355, United States Department of Agriculture.
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    14. Hadachek, Jeffrey & Saitone, Tina L & Sexton, Richard J & Skorbiansky, Sharon Raszap & Thornsbury, Suzanne & Effland, Anne, 2022. "Organic Feed Grains and Livestock: Factors That Influence Outcomes in Thinly Traded Markets," Economic Research Report 327179, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Industry concentration; Monopsony power; Hold up; Entry; Merger;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L1 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance
    • L4 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies

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