Mergers, Acquisitions and Competition Policy

Code:

2ECON14

Acronym:

FAPC

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Economics

Instance: 2015/2016 - 2S

Active?	Yes
Responsible unit:	Agrupamento Científico de Economia
Course/CS Responsible:	Master in Economics

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
ME	28	Bologna Syllabus	1	-	7,5	56	202,5

Teaching language

Portuguese

Objectives

 

The discipline of economicsof competition policyis based on two knowledge supports: economic theory, in particularindustrial organization, andlegal reasoning. A key featureof the courseis the interactionbetween theory andpractice.The disciplineof economicsof competition policyis addressed tostudents andpractitioners ofcompetition policy. The key issuesincludedin the syllabus are intendedfor individualsinterested ineconomic theoryandlegal practice.
The issuesof mergersand acquisitionsdeservespecial attentionin the syllabus. Mergers are among the strategic optionsavailable to thecompanies thatraisemore interestand controversyin the business worldandin academia, given the number of press pages thatthese business operationsoccupyandthe number ofacademic works of economic nature that they originate.
The studyof mergersand acquisitionsis not limitedto questions ofeconomic theory, it also includes the area ofeconomic policy. Inaddressingthetopic ofmergers from the standpoint of economic theory, two issues are emphasized: motivations andeconomic effects ofmergers. Mergers areamong those entrepreneurial behaviorswithmore immediate andobviouseffectson the market structure(s) in which thecompanies operate. The potential effectsof mergersare not independentof the relationship thatexistsbetween themarketsof the companiesinvolved, sothe studyof the economic effectsrequires aclassification ofmergersaccording tocriteria usedin economic literature.

Learning outcomes and competences

The syllabus provides an advance formation in economics of competition policy and therefore allows the understanding of the economic motivation and impacts of mergers and acquisitions.

Working method

Presencial

Program

1. Competition Policy: History, Objectives and the Law

2. Market Power and Welfare: Introduction

3. Market Definition and the Assessment of Market Power

4. Collusion  and Horizontal Agreements

5. Horizontal Mergers

6. Vertical Restraints and Vertical Mergers

7. Conglomerate Mergers

8. Predation, Monopolization, and Other Abusive Practices

Mandatory literature

Massimo Motta; Competition Policy: Theory and Practice, Cambridge University Press, 2004. ISBN: 978-0-521-01691-9

Teaching methods and learning activities

Theoretical and practical lessons.

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

Designation	Weight (%)
Teste	100,00
Total:	100,00

Calculation formula of final grade

Students may choose between taking three tests throught the semester and a final exam. Tests have the following weight:
1st test: 1/3 of the final mark; 2nd test: 1/3 of the final mark; 3rd test: 1/3 of the final mark.

The 3rd test will at the same time as the final exam. Students may choose the final exam either at the beginning of the semester or after knowing their grades of the first two tests.

The final mark from tests is equal to the weighted average of grades of the three tests. If students choose the final exam, their final mark is obtained from the final exam.

Observations

Complementary bibliography: Jeffrey Church and Roge Ware; Industrial Organization: A Strategic Approach, McGraw-Hill, 2000. ISBN: 0-256-20571-X

Simon Bishop and Mike Walker; The Economics of EC Competition Law, Sweet & Maxwell, 2002. ISBN: 0421 83000X