Paradox of competition in economics names a model of a situation where measures, which offer a competitive advantage to an individual economic entity, lead to nullification of advantage if all others behave in the same way.
In some cases the finite state is even more disadvantageous for everybody than before (for the totality as well as for the individual).
Stützel distinguishes three categories of paradoxes of competition:[1] Wolfgang Stützel analyses paradoxes of competition using the concept of Balances Mechanics (German: Saldenmechanik).
Concerning the pursuit of export surpluses he distinguishes as follows:[5] On overall economy examination (macroeconomics, aggregation problem) the benefit which individual economies want to achieve for themselves (legitimately) often appears as so called lead effect as against an inevitable lag effect of others.
When lag effects are condoned, no paradox of competition arises.