Regulating Competition

"Regulatory competition within Europe and internationally, operates in several fields with different outcomes. This book offers a comparative legal and economic analysis of corporate, securities and competition law, exploring the reasons behind such differences. The books conceptual framework covers the most relevant drivers of competition, including legal actors incentives, channels of competition and governance design. It shows how the different drivers and institutional designs are shaping competitive interactions, drawing relevant conclusions for both general and field specific regulatory policy. Providing a comparative analysis of regulatory competition in three legal fields, this book will be a valuable resource for researchers and academics in law, economics and political science, as well as policymakers legislator, regulator, judiciary at both national and European levels."--Publisher

A guide to curbing monopoly power in stock markets Engaging and informative, Regulating Competition in Stock Markets skillfully analyzes the impact of the recent global financial crisis on health and happiness, and uses this opportunity to put regulatory systems in perspective. Happiness is lost because of emotional and physical health deterioration resulting from the crisis. Therefore, the authors conclude that financial crisis prevention should be the focus of public policy. This book is the most comprehensive study so far on potential risks to the stock market, especially various forms of market manipulation that lead to mania and eventual crisis. Based on litigation cases from international stock markets, and borrowing multidisciplinary findings in the fields of finance, economics, accounting, media studies, criminology, legal studies, psychology, and medicine, this book is the first to provide thorough micro-level regulatory proposals rooted in financial reality. By focusing on securities trading, they apply antitrust measures to limiting monopolistic power that is used for the manipulation of investors' perception and monopolistic profit. These proposals are quantifiable, adjustable, inexpensive, and can be easily implemented by any securities regulating agency for real-time oversight and daily operations. The recommendations found here are intended to improve the fairness and transparency of the financial markets, thereby perfecting the market competition, protecting investors, stabilizing the market, and preventing crises Explores how avoiding crises can to contribute to a more scientific, health aware, and civilized economic and social development Written by a team of authors who have extensive experience in this dynamic field, including Nobel Laureate Lawrence R. Klein Since the founding of the first, organized stock exchange in Amsterdam 400 years ago, no systematic economic research results on stock markets have been implemented in stock market regulation around the world. Regulating Competition in Stock Markets aims to fill this void.

. . . a treasure trove of valuable insight and commentary into the utility markets and how they are, and should be, regulated. European Competition Law Review Regulating Utilities and Promoting Competition continues the series of annual books, published in association with the Institute of Economic Affairs and the London Business School, which critically review the state of utility regulation and competition policy. With contributions by some of the leading figures in the field, this important new book presents incisive chapters on a number of prominent topics. These include, amongst others, the future of the railways, the international trade in gas, the economics and politics of wind power and the role of economics in merger reviews. A key feature of the book is the careful examination of fundamental issues, not only from the viewpoint of academic and other independent commentators, but also by the regulators and heads of competition authorities themselves. By addressing significant developments both in Britain and abroad, the authors draw important lessons about the policy changes needed as well as their subsequent implementation. This book will be of great value to practitioners, policymakers and academics alike who are concerned with regulation, deregulation and policies to promote competition.

Cartels, trusts and agreements to reduce competition between firms have existed for centuries, but became particularly prevalent toward the end of the 19th century. In the mid-20th century governments began to use so called ‘cartel registers’ to monitor and regulate their behaviour. This book provides cases studies from more than a dozen countries to examine the emergence, application and eventual decline of this form of regulation. Beginning with a comparison of the attitudes to regulation that led to monitoring, rather than prohibiting cartels, this book examines the international studies on cartels undertaken by the League of Nations before World War II. This is followed by a series of studies on the context of the registers, including the international context of the European Union, and the importance of lobby groups in shaping regulatory outcomes, using Finland as an example. Section two provides a broad international comparison of several countries’ registers, with individual studies on Norway, Australia, Japan, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands. After examining the impact of registration on business behaviour in the insurance industry, this book concludes with an overview of the lessons to be learnt from 20th century efforts to regulate competition. With a foreword by Harm Schroter, this book outlines the rise and fall of a system that allowed nations to tailor their approach to regulating competition to their individual circumstances whilst also responding to the pressures of globalisation that emerged after the Second World War. This book is suitable for those who are interested in and study economic history, international economics and business history.

Competition and Economic Regulation in Water: The Future of the European Water Industry reviews the main developments in economic regulation and competition in the European water industry and considers ways in which economic regulation and competition should be further developed. The book focusses on the best means of regulating or introducing competition into the industry in light of its present structure. Competition and Regulation in Water: The Future of the European Water Industry concentrates on the water industry, however, many of the conclusions are equally applicable also to the wastewater industry. Contents Introduction Water industry fundamentals: the rationale for regulation and the scope for competition A framework for evaluating different models of water industry regulation England & Wales: private ownership and independent regulation France: competition for the market and contract-based regulation Germany: public-private partnerships and multi-sector utilities Developing water sector regulatory frameworks in less developed countries Appendix: The legislative framework for the water industry in England & Wales

A nuanced assessment of the relationship between competition law and economic regulation, focusing on substantive and policy-oriented concerns.

Shaping markets through competition and economic regulation is at the heart of addressing the development challenges facing countries in southern Africa. The contributors to Competition Law and Economic Regulation: Addressing Market Power in southern Africa critically assess the efficacy of the competition and economic regulation frameworks, including the impact of a number of the regional competition authorities in a range of sectors throughout southern Africa. Featuring academics as well as practitioners in the field, the book addresses issues common to southern African countries, where markets are small and concentrated, with particularly high barriers to entry, and where the resources to enforce legislation against anti-competitive conduct are limited. What is needed, the contributors argue, is an understanding of competition and regional integration as part of an inclusive growth agenda for Africa. By examining competition and regulation in a single framework, and viewing this within the southern African experience, this volume adds new perspectives to the global competition literature. It is an essential reference tool and will be of great interest to policymakers and regulators, as well as the rapidly growing ecosystem of legal practitioners and economists engaged in the field.

The past thirty years have witnessed a transformation of government economic intervention in broad segments of industry throughout the world. Many industries historically subject to economic price and entry controls have been largely deregulated, including natural gas, trucking, airlines, and commercial banking. However, recent concerns about market power in restructured electricity markets, airline industry instability amid chronic financial stress, and the challenges created by the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act, which allowed commercial banks to participate in investment banking, have led to calls for renewed market intervention. Economic Regulation and Its Reform collects research by a group of distinguished scholars who explore these and other issues surrounding government economic intervention. Determining the consequences of such intervention requires a careful assessment of the costs and benefits of imperfect regulation. Moreover, government interventions may take a variety of forms, from relatively nonintrusive performance-based regulations to more aggressive antitrust and competition policies and barriers to entry. This volume introduces the key issues surrounding economic regulation, provides an assessment of the economic effects of regulatory reforms over the past three decades, and examines how these insights bear on some of today’s most significant concerns in regulatory policy.