A Potentially Crucial Advantage. Export Cartels as a Source of Power for Weak Nations

This article argues that cartels can in certain circumstances be a source of power for the small and weak nations, and that this aspect has often been overlooked in current public discussions about cartels, which tend to emphasize their negative effects. In particular, we will look at export cartels, which, in most countries, are exempted from the scope of tough competition laws, but which have since the end of the 1980s received an increasing amount of criticism. Yet, as several writers have noted, the available empirical evidence on the actual effects and activities of export cartels is very limited. This article expands our knowledge by analyzing one country, Finland, where these institutions played an exceptionally important role. The Finnish export associations helped the country?s small and insignificant producers become significant players in world markets, and promoted economic and technical development in their home country. Yet, the Finnish cartels also promoted the cartelization of international trade.