Economics and Monopoly Vocabulary

Vocabulary terms and definitions related to antitrust laws, consumer behavior, market structures, and supply terminology based on the EKOF 2025/26 lecture notes.

antitrust legislation

law intended to promote free competition in the market place by outlawing monopolies

price war

a period of intense competition among businesses in which each competitor tries to cut retail prices below those of the others

markup

a term used to indicate how much the price of a product is above the cost of producing and distributing the product

consumer durables

things that people buy that last a long time, like refrigerators or television

consumer boom

a period when consumers are spending a lot

consumer boycott

refusal by consumers to buy things from a country or company they disapprove of

consumer confidence

the feeling that people have about economic prospects

consumer spending

the amount consumers spend, often referred to when discussing the economy as a whole

consumer behaviour

the study of how, why, where and when people buy things

consumer backlash

the resistance of consumers to things or organizations that they disapprove of

money supply

amount of money which exists in the economy

supply price

price at which something is provided

the law of supply and demand

general rule that the amount of a product which is available is related to the needs of the possible customer

supplier

person or company which supplies or sells goods and services

to supply

to provide something which is needed

in short supply

not available in large enough quantities to meet the demand

legal monopoly (de jure monopoly)

a monopoly based on laws explicitly preventing competition

efficiency monopoly

a monopoly where a single firm is satisfying all consumer demand

natural monopoly

a monopoly where economies of scale are so large that a single firm can supply the entire market without exhausting them

coercive monopoly

firm that arises as the result of any sort of activity that violates the principle of a free market

pure monopoly

monopoly where only one firm provides a certain product or service in a certain country or area

monopsony

situation where there is only one single large buyer on the market

oligopoly

situation where several firms provide a certain product or service in a certain country or area

monopolistic competition

situation where many firms offer products or services that are similar, but not perfect substitutes

collusion

secret or illegal agreement between two or more firms to artificially set a price of a product or service

alienation

one of the disadvantages of division of labour that refers to the estrangement many workers feel from their work

homogeneous goods

goods that are roughly the same regardless of which firm's product it is

gorilla

a company that dominates an industry without having a complete monopoly