Wage differentials in Japan: 1958-85

The market is a place where people behave quite relentlessly. If one person is selling a particular commodity at a higher price than others, no one will buy that commodity from him, however virtuous or merciful he is known to be. Of course, the actual world does not always work exactly in this way, but if it works too differently, the case is regarded as being an exceptional one. Thus, the assumption that the market is a relentless place is acceptable as a first approximation ot the real world.