Abstract
The paper develops a methodological framework for quantifying the impact of merger control regulations. While most countries have different criteria in terms of sales, market shares or combinations of the above, and while listing an inventory of these criteria is easy, such an exercise does not provide an answer regarding their impact on the market for corporate control. A methodology is developed to compare empirically the percentage of firms affected in an industry in a country by the “clearing in advance” regulation. By comparing industries and countries, we are able to provide an indication of the impact of merger regulations for a large number of industries in Europe. As such we provide a first indication of the tightness of ex ante merger review.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Baker, J.B., “The case for antitrust enforcement,” Journal of Economic Perspectives, vol. 17(4), pp. 27–50, 2003.
Barros, P.P., Clougherty, J. and Seldeslachts, J., Remedy for Now but Prevent for Tomorrow: The Deterence Effects of Merger Policy Tools. WZB mimeo, 2006.
Bernheim, D. and Whinston, M., “Multimarket contact and collusive behavior,” Rand Journal of Economics, vol. 21, pp. 1–26, 1990.
Bittlingmayer, G., “Did antitrust policy cause the great merger wave?,” Journal of Law and Economics, vol. 28, pp. 77–118, 1985.
Brakman, S., Garretsen, H. and Van Marrewijk, C., Comparative Advantage, Cross Border Mergers and Merger Waves: International Economics Meets Industrial Organization. CESifo Forum 1/2006, pp. 22–26, 2006.
Checchi, D., Navaretti, G. and Turrini, A., “Adjusting labour demand: Multinational versus national firms–A cross-European analysis,” The Journal of the European Economic Association, vol. 1 (2-3), 2003.
Crandall, B.W. and Winston, C., “Does antitrust policy improve consumer welfare? Assessing the Evidence,” Journal of Economic Perspectives, vol. 17(4), pp. 3–26, 2003.
Duso, T., Neven, D. and Röller, L., The Political Economy of European Merger Control: Evidence Using Stock Market Data. CEPR Discussion Papers 3880, 2003.
Eeckhout, J., “Gibrat’s law for (all) cities,” American Economic Review, vol. 94(5), pp. 1429–1451, 2004.
Hinloopen, J. and Van Marrewijk, C., Comparative Advantage, the Rank-Size Rule and Zipf’s law. Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper 2006-100/1, 2006.
Katsoulacos, Y., “Rethinking merger control policy,” in E.U. Competition Law and Policy, Development & Priorities, Athens, pp. 29–44, 2002.
Konings, J., Van Cayseele, P. and Warzynski, F., “The dynamics of industrial mark-ups in two small open economies: Does national competition policy matter?,” International Journal of Industrial Organization, vol. 19, pp. 841–859, 2001.
Konings, J., Van Cayseele, P. and Warzynski, F., “The Effect of privatization and competitive pressure on firms’s price-cost margins,” The Review of Economics and Statistics, vol. 87(1), pp. 124–134, 2005.
Konkurrensverket, Fighting Cartels, Why and How?, Stockholm 2001.
Merger Control, Merger Control in 47 Jurisdictions Worldwide, (www.global-competition.com) 2002.
Neary, P., “Globalization and market structure,” Journal of the European Economic Association, vol. 1(2–3), (April–May), pp. 245–271, 2003.
Office of Fair Trading, The development of targets for consumer savings arising from competition policy, (London), p. 166, 2002.
PWC, A tax on mergers? Surveying the time and costs to business of multi-jurisdictional merger reviews. A study commissioned by the International Bar Association and the American Bar Association, 2003.
Smets, H. and Van Cayseele, P., “Competing merger policies in a common agency framework,” International Review of Law and Economics, vol. 15, pp. 425–441, 1995.
Sutton J., Technology and Market Structure, p. 676. MIT: Cambridge, MA, 1998.
Van Cayseele, P., Sabbatini, P.L. and Van Meerbeeck, W., “National competition policies, chap. 4,” in: Galli G. and J. Pelckmans (eds.), Regulatory Reform and Competitiveness in Europe, Horizontal Issues. Cheltenham and Northampton, MA, (Edward Elgar), p. 544, 2000.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
The usual disclaimer applies.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
De Loecker, J., Konings, J. & Cayseele, P.V. Merger Review: How Much of Industry is Affected in an International Perspective?. J Ind Compet Trade 8, 1–19 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10842-007-0007-9
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10842-007-0007-9