The legacy of Bismarck

Many mechanisms (such as auctions) efficiently allocate an asset to the firm which values it most highly. But sometimes the asset’s owner may benefit from the transfer only if the asset is not too valuable to potential buyers. In this setting, we examine the efficiency of mechanisms when the potential buyers have private information about the asset’s value. We show that rent seeking, and lobbying, rather than merely wasting resources, can lead to allocations which are close to efficient.     

我国民主政治建设的历史性转变

新中国成立60年来,我国的民主政治建设发生了举世瞩目的历史性变化.这些历史性的变化,包括在指导思想上的历史性转变、在治国方略上的历史性转变和在体制机制上的历史性转变.回顾60年的历程,特别是回顾和总结我国民主政治建设的历史性转变,对于我们坚持走中国特色社会主义道路,开拓社会主义现代化建设的新局面,有着重要的理论和现实意义.     

Horizontal mergers and efficiencies; theory and anti trust practice

Horizontal mergers can be challenged by anti trust authorities under both the US and EU Horizontal Merger Guidelines. More horizontal mergers are unconditionally approved in the US than in the EU. EU merger policy toughened after 1998 but became more in line with US practices after 2004. Differences in merger policies between the US and the EU can be explained by a greater scope of the efficiency argument in the US. The paper argues that firms only want to merge in oligopoly, if they expect to realize substantial merger specific efficiency gains, which counterbalances the price increasing effect of merger.