Saving "the Market” out of Cambridge: “Market Aggregation”
Once upon a time, there were two towns, economically identical but politically-independent: namely, the Garden City of Eden and Wonderland of Alice. Naturally, the market conditions, including the quantity traded and the price (in average) are all the same. Not to mention, each enjoys the same amount of “consumer surplus” or “producer surplus.” Now, suppose that the two towns establish a diplomatic tie and combine two township economies into one. That is to be called “market aggregation” as opposed to mathematical integration: the former with “marginal” the latter with infinitesimal. Elastic and expansive. In the aggregated market, the market price remains the same while the quantity and the communal surplus will each be the arithmetic sum total from the two separately. The market is lengthened without (vertical) expansion of communal surplus or enhancement in efficiency. ...