Competition, Regulation and Inflation. Overview of Options for Action in Competition Economics

In the context of the burgeoning discussion about inflation-curbing initiatives, measures to activate competition were also very quickly demanded by policymakers. Although competition policy cannot compensate for undesirable developments in monetary and fiscal policy, it is nevertheless capable of making a long-term contribution to curbing inflation. Based on an overview of markets with a particularly high market concentration in Austria, analyses of competition economics will be carried out to determine the extent to which inflation-driving impairments of functioning competition actually result from this high market concentration. In addition to measures that can be implemented in the short term to intensify competition on the basis of the current legal framework, reform options for Austrian competition law will also be discussed. Furthermore, options for the use of the possibilities of influence on entrepreneurial decisions given by public ownership of companies for the benefit of the general public, especially in the energy sector, will be explored. Summary conclusions for Austrian competition policy round off the analysis.