Product Market Competition and Economic Performance in Iceland

This paper discusses the current state of product market competition in Iceland, including the legal and regulatory framework, and suggests directions for further improvement. Given the size of the economy, efficiency considerations dictate high concentration in many markets, and preventing abuse of...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Thomas Laubach, Michael Wise
Format: Report
Language:unknown
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1787/605284451863
Description
Summary:This paper discusses the current state of product market competition in Iceland, including the legal and regulatory framework, and suggests directions for further improvement. Given the size of the economy, efficiency considerations dictate high concentration in many markets, and preventing abuse of market dominance is therefore a challenging task. Changes to competition law since the early 1990s have strengthened competitive forces in many sectors of the economy, and proposed amendments to that law would further improve market surveillance. The changes in the regulatory framework for telecommunications have helped vigorous competition to develop in most segments, but there remain problems in pricing of access to the local loop. In the still publicly owned electricity sector, however, competition in generation and sales is so far virtually non-existent despite new legislation. Other policies discussed include agricultural support, policies towards foreign direct investment, and public procurement and provision of publicly funded services. Concurrence sur les marchés de produits et performance économique en l'Islande Le présent document de travail examine l’état actuel de la concurrence sur les marchés de produits en Islande, sous l’angle juridique et réglementaire notamment, et suggère un certain nombre d’améliorations possibles. Étant donné la taille de l’économie, des raisons d’efficience impose une forte concentration sur de nombreux marchés et il est donc d’autant plus indispensable d’éviter les abus de position dominante. Les modifications apportées au droit de la concurrence depuis le début des années 90 ont renforcé les forces concurrentielles dans de nombreux secteurs de l’économie et les amendements proposés permettraient d’améliorer encore la surveillance des marchés. S’agissant des télécommunications, l’évolution du cadre réglementaire a permis le développement d’une concurrence intense dans la plupart des segments du marché, mais des problèmes subsistent en ce qui concerne la tarification de l’accès ...