assumption were held, a positive external effect of a proposed merger would represent a sufficient condition to allow the merger … theory, moreover, demonstrates that privately unprofitable mergers can be the result of rational action. Therefore, we drop … this restrictive assumption and allow for unprofitable mergers to occur. This exerts a considerable impact on merger policy …

either merge with a similar component producer (horizontal merger) or a complementary one (vertical merger) of a composite …, higher marginal cost savings are required for a horizontal merger in a composite industry not to result in a price increase …

scope of profit enhancement. In a unionised oligopoly with centralised wage setting and decreasing returns to scale …