Tepper and Hearn also illustrate the link between the rise of oligopolies and an increase in price-fixing cartels—“two thirds of cartels take place in industries in which the top four firms have 75 percent or more market share.’’
Analyzing the presidential election of 2016, the authors said concentrated industry in rural areas and small towns has caused worker anxiety about finding jobs. By tapping into that fear and calling the markets rigged, Donald Trump won 2,584 counties representing 36 percent of the gross domestic product of the United States. Hillary Clinton won 472 counties that represented 64 percent of the GNP.
Tepper, who is founder of Variant Perception, a research group catering to hedge funds, banks and family offices, and Hearn, who is head of business development at Variant, conclude with a chapter that offers solutions and remedies, including preventing mergers that reduce competition; enforcing anti-trust laws; passing regulation that avoids killing small companies; granting patents and copyrights for a limited time without extension; encouraging stock ownership by workers, and limiting share buybacks.
The Myth of Capitalism, by Jonathan Tepper and Denise Hearn, John Wiley & Sons Inc., 300 pages, $27.95
Eleanor O’Sullivan is an award-winning journalist who writes for Financial Advisor.