Most economies in the United States seem captivated by the spell of the free market. Consequently, nothing seems good ornormal which does not accord with the requirements of the free 1market. A price that is determined by the seller or, for that matter,establishing by anyone other than the aggregate of consumers 2seemly harmful. Accordingly, it requires a major act of will to think 3of price-fixing(the determination of prices by the seller)as bothnormal or having a valuable economic function. In fact, price-fixing 4is normal at all industrialized societies if the industrial system itself 5provides, as an effortless consequence of its own development, theprice-fixing that they requires. Modern industrial planning requires 6and rewards great size. Hence, a comparatively small number of large firms will be competing for the same group of consumers. Each large firm will act with full consideration of the needs that it has inthe common with other large firms competing for the same 7customers. Each large firm will nevertheless avoid significant price- 8cutting, because price-cutting would be prejudicial to the common interest in a stable demand for products. Most economists do not see price-fixing when it occurs because they expect it to be broughtabout by number of explicit agreements among large firms; it is not. 9 Moreover, those economists who argue that allowing the free market to operate without interference is the most efficient method ofestablishing prices has not considered the economies of non-socialist 10countries other than the United States. These economies employ intentional price-fixing, usually in an overt fashion.