Dr Thomas Sampson SAL 2.34

Dr Dmitry Mukhin SAL 1.24

This course is available on the MSc in Econometrics and Mathematical Economics, MSc in Economics and MSc in Economics (2 Year Programme). This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit.

Students must have completed Introductory Course in Mathematics and Statistics (EC400).

In exceptional circumstances, students may take this course without EC400 provided they meet the necessary requirements and have received approval from the course conveners (via a face-to-face meeting), the MSc Economics Programme Director and their own Programme Director. Contact the Department of Economics for more information (econ.msc@lse.ac.uk) regarding entry to this course.

A graduate course in international economics consisting of i) the fundamentals of international trade and its application to policy and ii) international macroeconomics.

Trade: Comparative advantage and the gains from trade. Technology, factor endowments and patterns of international trade. Empirical tests of trade models. Trade and the labour market. Adjustment to trade liberalisation. Intra-industry trade. Gravity equation. Firm heterogeneity and selection into trade. Foreign direct investment. General equilibrium trade policy.

International macroeconomics: Intertemporal trade and the current account balance. Dynamics of small open economies. The real exchange rate and the terms of trade. Uncertainty and international financial markets. Monetary model of exchange rate determination: flexible and sticky prices. Introduction to currency crises models.

20 hours of lectures and 9 hours of seminars in the AT. 20 hours of lectures and 10 hours of seminars in the WT. 1 hour of seminars in the ST.

There will be a reading week in Week 6 of AT and in Week 6 of WT (no lectures or classes in those weeks).

This course is delivered through a combination of classes and lectures totalling a minimum of 60 hours across Autumn Term, Winter Term and Spring Term.

Two marked assignments per term.

A full reading list will be distributed at the beginning of the course. Some important items are:

R Feenstra, Advanced International Trade: Theory and Evidence, Princeton, 2004;

M Obstfeld & K Rogoff, Foundations of International Macroeconomics, MIT Press, 1996.

Exam (50%, duration: 2 hours, reading time: 15 minutes) in the spring exam period.
Essay (50%, 6000 words) in the ST.