Why Price Fixing Is Easier to Describe Than to Prove

Opublikowano: 2026-09-17

Picture two gas stations across the street from each other. One increases its price. The other one follows. And it happens over and over again. The pattern looks funny. But does it prove price-fixing? In episode 2 of How Cartels Really Work, we explain why it is a lot harder to prove a cartel than it is to describe one. We follow six observations that make the hypothetical case incrementally more compelling: simultaneous price increases, repeated matching, prices rising independently of costs, communications between competitors, increasing specificity of discussions, and finally evidence of an agreement. The...