The U.S. Competition Landscape

Executive summary

Public evidence does not support a single national competition score. The clearest picture comes from five bounded systems. Among eight curated markets, four current profiles publish highly concentrated readings while four withhold HHI because public shares are incomplete or aggregate. The 2022 Economic Census publishes revenue-based HHI for 679 of 899 detailed six-digit industries, with a median of 284 among published rows; strict 2017-2022 comparisons remain a separate history lens. KFF's 2024 individual-market data place median state HHI at 3,414 and 36 of 51 jurisdictions above 2,500. A separately bounded 2025 FDIC screen places median statewide branch-deposit HHI at 903, with 5 of 51 jurisdictions above 2,500. A deeper FDIC layer publishes 3,104 county and county-equivalent branch-deposit screens with a median HHI of 2,826; 1,792 exceed 2,500 and 187 contain one reported organization. Banking markets are often local, but county boundaries may not match them, so both FDIC layers remain screens rather than legal market definitions. USDA's historical national beef-packer CR4 adds a buyer-side concentration anchor while remaining distinct from individual packer shares, regional cattle procurement markets, and the related Census slaughtering-industry revenue screen. The FY2025 HSR report records 2,006 reported transactions and a 2.1% Second Request rate among adjusted transactions. Dated enforcement records add procedure and institutional context, not causal proof. Read together, these systems identify where scrutiny and public disclosure are most valuable. Read as one composite, they would erase market definition, geography, vintage, and legal meaning. This report therefore presents a national competition landscape with explicit handoffs to the underlying markets, industries, state and local screens, merger series, policy records, and source dossiers.