1970s (Laidler, 1977, p. 134). If this lack of difference is due to the omission of a risk variable then, since our results indicate a bias toward zero in the estimated partial elasticity for a 1970s-like case, the current demand for money may be more interest elastic than it appears and also it may be more elastic than in the 1930s. The policy implication of a greater interest elasticity in the demand for money is that a given increase in the money supply has less impact upon income.

Résumé. Les auteurs examinent certaines des questions fondamentales relatives à la concentration, à l'intensité de la concurrence et aux rendements d'échelle du secteur canadien de la vérification. Selon les résultats de leurs travaux, il pourrait être plus approprié de construire les indices de concentration en fonction des «sept grands» qu'en fonction des «huit grands» cabinets comme le veut la tradition. Les auteurs en viennent également à la conclusion que le secteur est assujetti à long terme à des rendements d'échelle constants et que le marché des services de vérification est assez concurrentiel.

We examine some of the basic issues concerning concentration, the level of competition, and returns to scale in the Canadian audit industry. Our findings indicate that it may be more appropriate to construct the concentration indexes in terms of the “Big Seven” instead of the traditional “Big Eight” firms. The results also indicate that the industry is subject in the long run to constant returns to scale and imply fairly competitive markets for audit services.