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Currently, there are only a few empirical studies that have studied the possible
consequences of cartels on productivity growth. Empirical insights about cartels
would be critical for competition authorities to examine and legitimize their own
policies. Until 1998, the Netherlands had a permissive attitude towards cartels—
cartels were required to register. The Netherlands’ cartel register provides an opportunity to study the effects of cartelization on productivity growth. By using
cartel and industry data on productivity growth, we estimate the impact of cartel
formation, cartel presence, and cartel termination on the total productivity
growth in the Netherlands between 1982 and 1998. Our research results suggest
that cartel presence, indicated by registration status in the cartel register, indeed
curbs productivity growth.
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