Question

an oligopoly is ______.

a form of competition in which only a few sellers exist, each with a fairly large share of the market

a situation in which there are many buyers and sellers of products that are virtually identical, so no single supplier can influence the price

a situation in which one company dominates a market to the degree that it can control prices

a situation in which many sellers differentiate their products from those of competitors in at least some small way and are therefore able to charge different prices for them

Explanation:

To answer this, we recall the definition of an oligopoly. An oligopoly is a market structure with a few large firms (sellers) that each have a significant market share. Let's analyze each option:

• First option: Matches the oligopoly definition (few sellers, each with large market share).
• Second option: Describes perfect competition (many buyers/sellers, identical products).
• Third option: Describes a monopoly (one company dominates).
• Fourth option: Describes monopolistic competition (many sellers, product differentiation).

Answer:

A. a form of competition in which only a few sellers exist, each with a fairly large share of the market