The selected companies are Apple, Walmart, and Kroger. Firstly, Apple was chosen because it one of the most successful businesses in the United States and occupies third place in the “Fortune 500” list. Apple operates in the tech industry and sells various tech products, including smartphones, computers, tablets, and accessories. Apple also runs an online app store and music service. Based on the firm’s characteristics, Apple can be considered an oligopoly. On the one hand, the company is large enough to have a significant share of the market, meaning that there are few players in the industry (Sloman et al. 176). On the other hand, Apple still faces competition from Samsung, Microsoft, and some other tech firms that sell similar products, meaning that it is not a monopoly (Sloman et al. 176). The said market structure facilitates Apple’s activities because it restricts new companies from entering the market, thus limiting competition.
Secondly, Walmart was chosen because it is considered by Fortune to be the most successful company, occupying the first place in the “Fortune 500” list. Walmart operates in the wholesale retail industry because it sells a great variety of products, many of which come in bulk. Despite Walmart’s evident market leadership, the company cannot be considered a monopoly. Like Apple, Walmart is an oligopoly facing competition from a few other players in the same industry. For Walmart, the key competitors in the United States are Costco and Target, which are both on Fortune’s 500 list, too. The oligopolistic market structure impacts Walmart’s profits by limiting competition and restricting new entries into the market. However, because large market players are still forced to compete with one another, Walmart’s profits are limited by its market share.
Thirdly, Kroger was chosen because it is one of the most famous supermarket companies in the United States, and the company is familiar to every American (“Fortune 500”). Kroger operates in the food retail industry, which is evidenced by the range of its products and services. The food retail industry has a large number of players that range from large supermarket chains, including Kroger, to small grocery shops and convenience stores. Thus, despite its large market share and favorable position. Kroger cannot be considered a monopoly or even and oligopoly (Sloman et al. 176). In contrast with Apple and Walmart, Kroger’s market structure is perfect competition (Sloman et al. 176). This type of market structure has unrestricted access to the market, meaning that Kroger faces competition from both established and new market players. Additionally, the products sold by Kroger are undifferentiated, and they can be bought elsewhere. Both characteristics affect Kroger’s profit by limiting its market share while supporting a stable demand for its products.
Works Cited
“Fortune 500.” Fortune. 2020. Web.
Sloman, John, et al. Economics for Business. 7th ed.,, Pearson Education, 2016.