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Imperfect competition
 
 
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In economic theory, imperfect competition is the competitive situation in any market where the conditions necessary for perfect competition
Perfect competition

In neoclassical economics and microeconomics, perfect competition describes a market in which there are many small firms, all producing homogeneous goods....
 are not satisfied. It is a market structure that does not meet the conditions of perfect competition.

Forms of imperfect competition include:



There may also be imperfect competition in markets due to buyers or sellers lacking information about prices and the goods being traded.

There may also be imperfect competition due to a time lag in a market.






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In economic theory, imperfect competition is the competitive situation in any market where the conditions necessary for perfect competition
Perfect competition

In neoclassical economics and microeconomics, perfect competition describes a market in which there are many small firms, all producing homogeneous goods....
 are not satisfied. It is a market structure that does not meet the conditions of perfect competition.

Forms of imperfect competition include:

  • Monopoly
    Monopoly

    In economics, a monopoly exists when a specific individual or enterprise has sufficient control over a particular product or service to determine significantly the terms on which other individuals shall have access to it....
    , in which there is only one seller of a good.
  • Oligopoly
    Oligopoly

    An oligopoly is a market form in which a market or industry is dominated by a small number of sellers . The word is derived from the Greek language for few sell....
    , in which there is a small number of sellers.
  • Monopolistic competition
    Monopolistic competition

    Monopolistic competition is a common market form. Many markets can be considered monopolistically competitive, often including the markets for restaurants, cereal, clothing, shoes and service industries in large cities....
    , in which there are many sellers producing highly differentiated goods.
  • Monopsony
    Monopsony

    In economics, a monopsony is a market form in which only one buyer faces many sellers. It is an example of imperfect competition, similar to a monopoly, in which only one seller faces many buyers....
    , in which there is only one buyer of a good.
  • Oligopsony
    Oligopsony

    An oligopsony is a market form in which the number of buyers is small while the number of sellers in theory could be large. This typically happens in market for inputs where a small number of firms are competing to obtain factors of production....
    , in which there is a small number of buyers.


There may also be imperfect competition in markets due to buyers or sellers lacking information about prices and the goods being traded.

There may also be imperfect competition due to a time lag in a market. An example is the “jobless recovery
Jobless recovery

A jobless recovery or jobless growth is a phrase used by economists to describe the recovery from a recession which does not produce strong growth in employment....
”. There are many growth opportunities available after a recession, but it takes time for employers to react, leading to high unemployment
Unemployment

File:World map of countries by rate of unemployment.pngUnemployment occurs when a person is available to work and currently seeking work, but the person is without Wage labour....
. High unemployment decreases wages, which makes hiring more attractive, but it takes time for new jobs to be created.