The Foundations, Definitions and Usages of Perfect Competition

The conference is dedicated to perfect competition and aims to confront old visions and contemporary conceptions. By studying the definitions of perfect competition, one might clarify the notion or distinguish its multiple meanings. A renewed discussion follows about the significance of the model and about its status as a benchmark. The study finally leads one to reconsider the question of the non-cooperative or the cooperative foundations of perfect competition. 

Practical information

The RER A (bold red line) is the best way to go to "Nanterre Université" from Paris (direction Saint Germain en Laye), but the suburban train from Gare Saint Lazare is also possible. Once at "Nanterre Université", take the walkway in front of the buildings E-D-C-B (see the attached map), enter the B building, walk straight and then take a left.

For a convenient hotel, we suggest you pick one in Paris enabling you to get easily to a "RER A" station: Charles de Gaulle - Etoile, Auber - Opera, Châtelet-Les-Halles, Gare de Lyon, Nation.

Programme / Program

Thursday, January the 13th.

10h15-10h30 : Accueil des participants / Welcoming of participants.

10h30-12h30 : Conférence inaugurale / Guest lecture.

• Joseph M. Ostroy (UCLA) : “From revealed preference to preference revelation” (paper with L. Makowski).

12h30-14h : Déjeuner / Lunch.

14h-15h30 : Histoire de la Concurrence Parfaite 1 / History of Perfect Competition 1.

• M. Mosca (University of Salento, Lecce-Italy) and M. Bradley (University of Maryland, Baltimore County-USA): “Perfect competition according to Enrico Barone”. Discutant / Discussant : A. Alvarez.
• A. Diemer (Université Blaise Pascal) : « Du rendement social dans une économie concurrentielle à la concurrence organisée : les apports de Maurice Allais ».
  Discutant / Discussant : (...)

15h30-16h : Pause / Coffee break.

16h-16h45 : Histoire de la Concurrence Parfaite 2 / History of Perfect Competition 2.

• T. Düppe (University of Hamburg): “Arrow and Debreu de-homogenized”.
  Discutant / Discussant : N. Berta.

Friday, January the 14th.

9h-10h30 : Edgeworth et Walras revisités / Edgeworth and Walras revisited.

• F. Donzelli (University of Milan): “Core versus competitive equilibrium: Negishi on the role of large numbers in Edgeworth’s convergence result”.
• A. Alvarez (Universidad de los Andes): “Rethinking the Edgeworth-Walras convergence on Perfect Competition à la Debreu-Scarf”.
  Discutant / Discussant : A. Rebeyrol.

10h30-11h : Pause / Coffee break.

11h-12h30 : Coeur et Equilibres Concurrentiels / Core and Competitive Equilibria.

• R. Routledge (University of Manchester): “On the Bertrand core and equilibrium of a market”.
• N. Ziros (University of Cyprus): “Non Walrasian decentralization of the core” (paper with L. Koutsougeras).
  Discutant / Discussant : G. Codognato.

12h30-14h : Déjeuner / Lunch.

14h-15h30 : Déséquilibre et Equilibre autour de la Concurrence Parfaite / Disequilibrium and Equilibrium around Perfect Competition.

• S. Ghosal and J. Porter (University of Warwick): “Out-of-equilibrium dynamics with decentralized exchange: cautious trading and convergence to efficiency”.
• L. Koutsougeras (University of Manchester / Université de Louvain La Neuve): “Price taking as the asymptotic limit of strategic behavior”.
  Discutant / Discussant : L. Julien.

15h30-16h : Pause / Coffee break.

16h-17h : Table ronde / Round table : the foundations of perfect competition.

• M. Dardi, R. Dos Santos Ferreira and N. Yannelis

This workshop is supported by Region Ile-de-France