We consider optional TOU (time-of-use) pricing for residential consumers as an alternative to a single TOU or flat rate structure offered by a publicly regulated electricity supplier. A general equilibrium model is developed and used to explore and quantify the effects of optional pricing on...

In an oligopoly market subject to environmental regulation through tradable pollution permits, polluters' output decisions affect the price of polluting. With a pollution tax, this feedback effect is absent. In a permit regime, I show that the feedback effect increases strategic firms'...

We construct a monopolistic competition model considering different markups across industries and firm-level heterogeneity of productivity. An excess entry occurs in low-markup (competitive) industry, and vice versa in high-markup (non-competitive) industry. To achieve the optimum allocation, a...

Interest rate caps, also called usury ceilings, are a widely used policy tool to protect consumers from excessive charges by loan providers. However, they are often cited as a barrier for the advancement of financial inclusion, as they may reduce the incentives to provide loans to lower-income...

We compare second-degree price discrimination with uniform pricing using two linear demands. Our comparison shows that second-degree price discrimination can result in a welfare-enhancing market foreclosure (both markets are served under uniform pricing but one of them is excluded under...

In this paper we argue that two important causes of welfare losses in oligopolistic markets have been neglected. We show that in models where location is endogenous, welfare losses arising from wrong locations or from lack of market coverage may be substantial despite firms competing in prices....

I study the welfare implications of size-dependent firm regulation policies (SDPs) in the presence of entrepreneurial risks. Although SDP has been considered a source of misallocation, I show that, once entrepreneurial risks are taken into account, SDP can improve efficiency. Quantitatively, I...

We construct a monopolistic competition model considering different markups across industries and firm-level heterogeneity of productivity. An excess entry occurs in low-markup (competitive) industry, and vice versa in high-markup (non-competitive) industry. To achieve the optimum allocation, a...

Interest rate caps, also called usury ceilings, are a widely used policy tool to protect consumers from excessive charges by loan providers. However, they are often cited as a barrier for the advancement of financial inclusion, as they may reduce the incentives to provide loans to lower-income...

We study the percentage of welfare losses (PWL) yielded by imperfect competition under product differentiation. When demand is linear, if prices, outputs, costs and the number of firms can be observed, PWL is arbitrary in both Cournot and Bertrand equilibria. If in addition, the elasticity of...