The standard reply is that investors who know or suspect that the market is being systematically distorted will enter the market on the other side, expecting to profit from the distortion. Empirically, attempts to deliberately sway markets in desired directions don’t last very long.
Doesn’t the futarchy hack come up here? Contractors will be betting that competitors timelines and cost will be high, in order to get the contract.
The standard reply is that investors who know or suspect that the market is being systematically distorted will enter the market on the other side, expecting to profit from the distortion. Empirically, attempts to deliberately sway markets in desired directions don’t last very long.