The Economics of Firm Competition

The course provides an overview about firm behaviour. Topics discussed include: • Competition and market power in markets • The structure of industries and markets • Strategic interactions among firms • Vertical relations and coordination in markets • The effect of firm behaviour on industry efficiency and societal welfare

After successfully completing the module, students will be able: • To describe the various forms of market structure; • To explain the role of competition, market power and coordination in markets; • To apply analytical tools to analyse strategic firm behaviour and interactions; • To understand the impact of firm behaviour and industry structure on welfare and competition policy. • To explain coordination and the conditions for efficient coordination.

A written examination is deemed appropriate to test the ability of students to analyse static and dynamic strategic behaviour of firms. Specifically, it assesses whether students can explain the role of competition, market power and coordination in markets. Students have to prove that they understand and can analyze the impact of firm behavior and industry structure on welfare and evaluate the welfare effects of competition policy. Students will be permitted to use non- programmable calculators during the examination. The exam duration is 90 minutes.

Undergraduate class work in microeconomics or industrial organisation.

The course combines lecture elements with an interactive approach. The professor presents key concepts and models through slides. Students are actively engaged in the learning process by independently working on selected steps of analytical models. This is followed by group discussions and reflections on the underlying intuition. The combination of developing analytical models and training intuition fosters the development of a solid understanding of the central themes of the course, particularly regarding strategic interactions between firms, vertical market relationships, and efficiency and social welfare.