ECON 4016 - International Finance IV (H)

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2020

This course introduces students to the core tools and themes of open-economy business-cycle theory. The objectives of the course are to enable students to: i) critically evaluate the relevant models and empirical works in open-economy macroeconomics, and ii) apply these analytical tools themselves to investigate topical issues in international macroeconomics.

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Course Details

Course Code	ECON 4016
Course	International Finance IV (H)
Coordinating Unit	Economics
Term	Semester 1
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	3
Contact	Up to 4 hours per week
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	N
Prerequisites	ECON 3510, or ECON 2506 & ECON 2507
Incompatible	ECON 7100
Restrictions	Available only to students enrolled in the BEc(Hons) program
Assessment	Typically, bi-weekly assignments, seminar presentation, mid-term test (or term research paper), and final exam

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Dr Nicolas Groshenny

Course Coordinator: Dr. Nicolas Groshenny

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Course Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

Compute, describe and interpret business-cycle stylized facts around the world.
Build and solve analytically simple theoretical equilibrium models of the current account.
Build and solve numerically more complex Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) models of Small-Open Economies.
Specify, estimate and identify empirical time series models (Structural Vector Auto-Regressions).
Use the SVAR models as an empirical benchmark to evaluate theoretical (DSGE) models.
Apply DSGE and SVAR models to a range of topical and policy relevant issues in open economy macroeconomics.

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Deep discipline knowledge informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1 accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)	1-6
Critical thinking and problem solving steeped in research methods and rigor based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment	1-6
Teamwork and communication skills developed from, with, and via the SGDE honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning	1-6
Career and leadership readiness technology savvy professional and, where relevant, fully accredited forward thinking and well informed tested and validated by work based experiences	1-6
Intercultural and ethical competency adept at operating in other cultures comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges	1-6
Self-awareness and emotional intelligence a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate	1-6

Learning Resources

Required Resources

Open Economy Macroeconomics, by Uribe and Schmitt-Grohe, 2017, Princeton University Press.

Recommended Resources

Recommended research articles will be advised during the course.

Online Learning

This course makes use of MyUni and you are required to check the website regularly.

https://myuni.adelaide.edu.au/webapps/login/
Learning & Teaching Activities

Learning & Teaching Modes

The course includes 4 or 5 group assignments, as well as weekly seminar presentations and discussions. Students are required to read and replicate a few seminal papers and to make presentations on the key methodologies and results. There is also a Final Research Project at the end of the semester.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

The University expects full-time students (i.e. those taking 12 units per semester) to devote a total of 48 hours per week to their studies. This translates to 12 hours per week for a semester course.

To begin, students will learn the baseline empirical techniques to extract cyclical components of aggregate variables and to compute business cycle facts for open economies.

Students will then learn how to solve analytically some simple theoretical models and relate the results to key issues. Finally, students will learn how to solve more complex macro models computationally using Matlab and the Dynare.

In order to evaluate these theoretical models against some empirical benchmark, students will also learn the basics of the Specification, Estimation and, most importantly for the purpose of this course, Identification of Structural Vector Autoregressions models using the econometric software Eviews.

In Lectures and in Seminars, students will be actively engaged to discuss topical and policy-relevant issues in international finance and to use models to discipline their thinking.

Students will regularly present their work at the weekly Seminars.

Learning Activities Summary

Students will be introduced to key concepts and models of international finance. The students will also developed the necessary analytical skills for model applications and policy discussions.

Further details will be provided at the beginning of the course.

Teaching & Learning Activities Related Learning Outcomes

Lectures (weekly, 2 hours) 1-6

Seminars (weekly, 2 hours) 1-6

Specific Course Requirements

None.

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

Due to the current COVID-19 situation modified arrangements have been made to assessments to facilitate remote learning and teaching. Assessment details provided here reflect recent updates.

Assessment Task	Due Date/ Week	Weight	Length	Learning Outcomes
Fortnightly Group Assignments (including 30 min Zoom presentation by each group)	Biweekly (starting from week 2)	50%	TBA	1-6
End-of-Semester Individual Research Project (including a 30 min Zoom presentation)	Week 14	50%	TBA	1-6
Total		100%

Assessment Related Requirements

Students are required to achieve a mark of at least 50% overall to pass the course.

Assessment Detail

Students are required: i) to read and replicate a few seminal articles; ii) to present and discuss key methodological issues and substantial results in open-economy macroeconomics during seminars.

Students need to demonstrate the ability to understand and articulate key economic issues related to international finance. Students are required to solve (analytically or numerically) theoretical and to estimate empirical models with reference to real issues.

Submission

Submission of assignments will be as outlined in the instructions provided on MyUni at the beginning of the course.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M11 (Honours Mark Scheme)
Grade	Grade reflects following criteria for allocation of grade	Reported on Official Transcript
Fail	A mark between 1-49	F
Third Class	A mark between 50-59	3
Second Class Div B	A mark between 60-69	2B
Second Class Div A	A mark between 70-79	2A
First Class	A mark between 80-100	1
Result Pending	An interim result	RP
Continuing	Continuing	CN

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator