Low Interest Rates, Market Power, and Productivity Growth
本研究提出了一个新的理论结果：长期利率下降会引发市场领导者相对于市场追随者更强的投资反应，从而导致市场更加集中、利润更高、总体生产率增长更低。利率下降对市场集中度的这一策略性效应意味着，随着利率趋近于零，总体生产率增长将下降。该框架对低利率环境下的反垄断政策具有参考意义，并为经济中利率降至极低水平时市场集中度上升与生产率增长下降的现象提供了统一解释。
英文原文
This study provides a new theoretical result that a decline in the long‐term interest rate can trigger a stronger investment response by market leaders relative to market followers, thereby leading to more concentrated markets, higher profits, and lower aggregate productivity growth. This strategic effect of lower interest rates on market concentration implies that aggregate productivity growth declines as the interest rate approaches zero. The framework is relevant for antitrust policy in a low interest rate environment, and it provides a unified explanation for rising market concentration and falling productivity growth as interest rates in the economy have fallen to extremely low levels.