The American way of trustbusting

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: time

Equally alarming is the suggestion that cartels are not just more prevalent, but also more sophisticated than anyone thought. Classic cartels are in dull, mature segments like glass and cardboard, where market shares are stable, brands cannot differentiate products and the cartel’s members can easily check for anyone breaking ranks. The startling thing about the OFT’s probe is that it is in branded goods, where co-ordinating a cartel should be hard.

Governments waste a lot of breath on their plans to make the economy more competitive. Helping competition by busting cartels gets you a long way. What will count now is the spine to see through controversial investigations, however much fuss the grocers and the rest of them kick up.