Introduction to Market Failure Definition: Market fails to allocate resources efficiently Outcome: Overproduction, underproduction, unfair distribution Example: Air pollution from factories
Causes of Market Failure Imperfect competition Public goods Externalities Information failure Missing markets
Types of Market Failure Productive inefficiency Allocative inefficiency Equity issues (inequality) Example: Luxury goods vs lack of hospitals
Imperfect Competition Monopoly → High price, low output (Example: Railways, Microsoft Windows) Oligopoly → Few big firms collude (Example: Telecom in India) Monopolistic Competition → Many firms, product differentiation (Example: Restaurants)
Public Goods Non-excludable & Non-rivalrous Examples: Streetlights, defense, clean air Free-rider problem → people use but don’t pay Govt intervention needed
Externalities Negative: Pollution, traffic, smoking 🚬 Positive: Education, vaccination 💉 Market produces 'too much' of negatives and 'too little' of positives
Government Role Regulation (laws against pollution, safety rules) Taxes & subsidies (carbon tax, subsidy on education) Providing public goods (streetlights, defense) Competition policy (anti-monopoly laws)
Real-life Examples Delhi air pollution (negative externality) Polio vaccination in India (positive externality) Free-rider problem: People using public WiFi without paying Jio & Airtel duopoly (imperfect competition)
Conclusion Market failure = when markets alone don’t work efficiently Causes: Imperfect competition, public goods, externalities Govt plays key role in correction