True which is why I posted the caveat. It is possible that the prices we are seeing are legitimate market dynamics. I just think given past history we should be skeptical of that. It smells like market manipulation to me.

Of course given the dynamics of business these days and how financialized these companies are it wouldn't surprise me if this is also just a result of refusal to invest capex in expansion. So long as the other 2-5 players in the market do the same there's no benefit to expanding or lowering prices. We all just sit on our hands and let market forces raise prices (and profit) for us.

Whatever the case it seems capitalism has gone off the rails in multiple ways.