Macroeconomics

Course goals

After this course, the student will be able to

• Describe and explain the interactions between the goods, money and labor market, the functioning of the economy in the short run, the relations between employment, inflation and output and the options for fiscal and monetary policy;
• Describe and explain the factors of growth and the way in which they shape the long-run prospects of the economy;
• Take a well-reasoned position regarding macroeconomic problems in general and in matters relating to economic policy in particular;
• Comprehend the main arguments of the economic literature that is discussed in this course and critically assess their merits and limitations;
• Comprehend the rationales of economic policy advisory organizations and central bank and be able to identify their merits and limits;
• Comprehend basic statistical tools used to analyze economic issues;
• Comprehend the position of an economic professional at the interface between economic science and economic policy;
• Strengthen their disciplinary grounding in economics, and gain a basic understanding of an interdisciplinary approach (interdisciplinary skills).
• Practice communication and collaboration skills (professional skills)

Content

This course lays the foundations for analyzing the economy at the macro level by combining macroeconomics with issues of economic policy. The content is presented in such a way that the real-world problems (like unemployment and inflation) are placed at the central stage. Additionally, it builds on the economic thinking introduced in the microeconomics course, by using concepts such as causality and models. The course starts with the the labour market and why economies face involuntary unemployment even when the economies are in equilibrium; and follows to the topics of variation in GDP and economic growth; the financial system; fiscal and monetary policies. The course ends with the role of institutions and institutional change on living standards. The course presents theoretical models which explain labour supply, labour demand, and real-world problems as unemployment and wage-setting decisions. The course will pay special attention to monetary issues (such as money, inflation, and central bank’s policy) and fiscal issues (such as consumption spending and investment spending). The course will treat a few case-study material in order to illustrate the concepts and models presented before-hand. Students will be challenged to integrate the macroeconomics concepts and theories with insights from the other three PPE fields (Philosophy, Politics and History), and will use data to analyze a specific macroeconomic problem.

Additional information

Please note: the time slot shown here is not yet final and may still be modified until the 3rd Wednesday in September.