. However, there is little consensus as to whether pricing collusion is also a source of profitability, and indeed, whether … perfect collusion among firms could achieve. Firms are estimated to cooperate on price to the extent that margins are 2 …

find that cartel firms have lower leverage during collusion periods. This is consistent with the idea that cartel firms …We analyze the financial leverage of firms that collude to soften product market competition by forming a cartel. We … strategically reduce leverage to make their cartels more stable, because high leverage makes deviations from a cartel agreement more …