This paper studies implicitly colluding oligopolists facing fluctuatingdemand. The credible threat of future punishments provides the discipline that facilitates collusion. However, the authors find that the temptation to unilaterally deviate from the collusive outcome is often greater when...

The authors study the pattern of pricing in which price changes are first announced by one firm and then matched by its rivals. In their model, this price leadership facilitates collusion under asymmetric information. In equilibrium, the leader earns higher profits than the follower....

This paper seeks to explain why monopolies keep their nominal prices constant for longer periods than do tight oligopolies. The authors show that cost changes create a larger incentive for duopolists to change their prices, while demand changes tend to have a greater effect on a monopolist. When...

This paper presents a model in which inventories are used by a duopoly to deter deviations from an implicitly collusive arrangement. Higher inventories allow firms to punish cheaters more strongly and can thus help to maintain collusion. The authors show that when demand is high, the incentive...