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OPEC's Market Power: An Empirical Dominant Firm Model for the Oil Market

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  • Rolf Golombek
  • Alfonso A. Irarrazabal
  • Lin Ma

Abstract

In this paper we estimate a dominant firm-competitive fringe model for the crude oil market using quarterly data on oil prices for the 1986-2009 period. All the estimated structural parameters have the expected sign and are significant at standard test levels. We find that OPEC exercised its market power during the sample period. Counterfactual experiments indicate that world GDP is the main driver of long-run oil prices, however, supply (depletion) factors have become more important in recent years.

Suggested Citation

  • Rolf Golombek & Alfonso A. Irarrazabal & Lin Ma, 2013. "OPEC's Market Power: An Empirical Dominant Firm Model for the Oil Market," CESifo Working Paper Series 4512, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_4512
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    oil; dominant firm; market power; OPEC; Lerner index; oil demand elasticity; oil supply elasticity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets
    • L22 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Firm Organization and Market Structure
    • Q31 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Demand and Supply; Prices

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