Can you remember a time when you were in the grocery store, standing in line, with prices galore? Many different goods are available, all with somewhat comparable features and costs. You’ve seen me there before. When it comes to pasta, cheese, and bread, I can’t tell you what makes one brand better than the other. Making a decision usually forces me to grab the first thing that’s on sale. Surely there’s no harm in it? In any case, the fact that I am somewhat unfamiliar with the distinctions is in no way an argument against their existence.
There are times when I return home with a grocery list, only to have my wife reprimand me for selecting Brand X over Brand Y. Imagine a world in which every single one of my decisions was identical. Imagine a scenario where a single factory produces all pasta brands, each possessing an identical bland flavor. For what reason wouldn’t I go with the least expensive option? In this hypothetical scenario, a totally competitive market for pasta exists. How about we break it down for you?
What is a perfectly competitive market?
Optimal market competition is essentially an abstract idea in economic theory. In addition to ensuring that all products are economically identical, a completely competitive market also displays the following characteristics:
Who are the producers if they have no say over the supply? Thus, they are unable to simply increase production in order to bring the market price down. Furthermore, they are unable to abruptly withdraw from the market or drastically reduce supply, which would lead to a drastic increase in prices.
Knowledgeable vendors and purchasers have access to “perfect” data. This implies that they are well-versed in product price trends across the board, across time periods, and in the present.
There are items available for purchase or sale without any associated fees. This means that there are no intermediaries. Additionally, consumers are free to transfer to any provider globally.
A complete lack of information and immobility in resources means that prices can never rise from the lowest point.
Clearly, a totally competitive market cannot exist in the actual world. We deem it unacceptable to ignore things like shipping charges and middlemen. Therefore, every real-life market is considered “imperfect.” Regardless, theory-building in economics occasionally entails a completely competitive market.
However, in a monopolistic market,
Modern society, also known as capitalism, often favors competitive marketplaces. For this reason, numerous statutes aim to prevent a business from establishing a monopoly and thus controlling prices. I assume you are familiar with antitrust rules and instances where the government intervenes to prevent a merger. However, the antitrust authorities still approve the majority of transactions. But if they think a merger will artificially restrict competition, they won’t think twice about blocking it.
Governments will intervene from time to time, even in cases where no funds are directly involved. People who lived in the early 2000s likely recall the government’s monopolistic lawsuit against Microsoft. Litigation stemmed from the fact that, unlike competing products, Microsoft included Internet Explorer in every Windows installation.
Is the Holy Grail of optimal market competition?
In theory, healthy competition is always a plus. Greater product quality and lower prices are the end results. Ultimately, increasing one’s income is a goal that everyone faces. Manufacturing a similar product at a lower cost is always an option for companies that believe they can improve upon their current offering. Afterwards, buyers will make their purchases publicly.
However, excessive market competition isn’t beneficial for anyone. Certainly, the prices are quite low. Customers could find that enticing. And yet, there are a lot of unsavory side effects. In a perfectly competitive market, profitability is nonexistent. We all pay the bare minimum since everyone has perfect information.
If a company is generating a profit, other producers will decrease their margin until no one is making any money at all. Innovation also stops happening in a totally competitive market. This is because improving the product is not part of the strategy. Creating a superior product is actually impossible in a strictly competitive market. This is due to the fact that a product’s basic quality is often identical to that of another product.
In real life, a perfectly competitive market is as close as possible
A totally competitive market, as we all know, is only an ideal situation. That one doesn’t exist in the real world. This is because there is no market in which both buyers and sellers possess complete and accurate knowledge. A few instances from actual life do come close, though.
For example, Amazon offers iPhone charging cables. A search for these items will return numerous results. Still, they all charge your iPhone, which is pretty much their only distinction. Nowadays, most people treat them like commodities. Pricing largely determines their popularity. Producers still attempt to stand out from the crowd in a few ways in an effort to increase their bottom line. Just one thing: some of them have more positive appraisals. This suggests that the quality of the items varies. And secondly, some come with connections, lengths, or colors that can be more appealing to certain clients.
These variations, however, do not conform to the standards that a product must meet in order to exist in a really competitive market. Oh, and I have a secret that not many people know. The general public in the United States views these cables as reasonably priced, at only a few dollars apiece. Strangely enough, I’ve seen identical cables at Hong Kong stores for half the price, even though they come in the same packaging. I would be surprised if you could find the cables for a lower price in China, where the initial manufacturing takes place. Clients just do not have complete knowledge when it comes to iPhone charging ropes.
In Conclusion
Let your mind wander to a time when invention was nonexistent. That’s the risk you face in an entirely competitive market. Many things would not be possible, including more efficient lighting, faster computers, and safer automobiles. Without financial incentives, companies wouldn’t compete for top talent in the job market. A decrease in hiring from competing companies means lower wages for all workers. Once a product enters a perfectly competitive market, wages will level out. Having highly competitive marketplaces makes for a dull world.
On the other hand, there are benefits to the economic concept of a wholly competitive market. Businesses and economists can use a theoretical framework to assess products and services while accounting for things like low entry barriers and government oversight. In the end, though, these are really an exercise in speculation.
