Roger Koppl has pushed the idea of "Big Players" in economic analysis for the better part of two decades. The idea comes from Fritz Machlup and it relates simply to the impact that key actors can have on market outcomes when their relative position represents a deviation from perfectly competitive conditions. In other words, when individuals possess market power their decisions can have an impact that is quite different from what we see when no market power is evident. In this situation, the markets do not exhibit the same stability that they would under ideal competitive situations.
Koppl has used the idea to great analytical and empirical effect in his work, culminating in his book Big Players and the Economic Theory of Expectations. So when I read the article in today's Washington Post conerning Ben Bernanke's testimony, I couldn't help but think of Roger's work and its relevance for understanding market movements resulting from Bernanke's statements. Especially when we consider the following picture that accompanied the article.
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