Price flexibility in British supermarkets

Jonathan S. Seaton and Michael Waterson

No 270631, Economic Research Papers from University of Warwick - Department of Economics

Abstract: This paper delivers a significantly different empirical perspective on micro pricing behaviour and its impact on macroeconomic processes than previous studies. We examine a seven year period of pricing behaviour by the major British supermarkets encompassing the recession year 2008 and the partial recovery of 2009. Several of our findings run strongly counter to established empirical regularities, in particular the high overall frequency of regular or reference price changes we uncover, the greater intensity of change in more turbulent times and the numerical dominance of price falls over rises. The pricing behaviour revealed also significantly challenges the implicit assumption that prices are tracking cost changes.

Keywords: Financial; Economics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 25
Date: 2012-05
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Working Paper: Price flexibility in British supermarkets (2012)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:uwarer:270631

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.270631

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