ECON 400: MACROECONOMICS FOR MONEY, BANKING AND FINANCE - 2024-2025
COURSE AIMS & OBJECTIVES, KEY SKILLS, AND LEARNING OUTCOMES
The course introduces state-of-the-art methods used in current macroeconomic research to understand short-run business cycle and inflation dynamics, as well as economic stabilisation policies. We will develop a broad and deep knowledge of modern Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) macroeconomic models that employ microeconomic foundations and rational expectations. These models will be solved using advanced analytical and numerical-computational approaches. More specifically, we will use the DSGE neoclassical Real Business Cycle (RBC) and New Keynesian (NK) frameworks to understand the different sources of aggregate economic fluctuations, and to examine the effects and roles of fiscal and monetary policies. Finally, the course examines contemporary issues such as financial frictions, government debt financing through distortionary taxation, and liquidity traps.
Upon successful completion of this module, students should be able to:
Analyse problems by identifying appropriate economic models and select the appropriate
techniques to solve those problems.
Understand the importance of micro-foundations and rational expectations in macroeconomic analysis.
Understand the role of central banks and governments in periods of economic uncertainty.
Use programming techniques to simulate and analyse Dynamic Stochastic General Equilibrium (DSGE) models. Seewww.dynare.orgfor the programing software that runs on MATLAB and that is used to simulate DSGE models.
Use rigorous economic arguments to justify policy conclusions.
You should strike a balance between reading the main textbooks and the journal articles listed below, and critically evaluate how these fit into the body of knowledge on the subject. Performing exercises, completing the coursework, attending (watching) lectures and workshops, revising, and working consistently throughout the year are vital for succeeding in this module (and any module as a matter of fact).
ECON 400 provides a solid foundation for a macroeconomics dissertation, further postgraduate studies in economics, and advanced research projects in academia, economic think-tanks, policy institutions, and central banks.
COURSE STRUCTURE
There are overall 20 hours of lectures and overall 10 hours of workshops / lab sessions throughout the Michaelmas (First) Term. We will also have online Q&A sessions. See Online Timetabling for more information.
FINAL MARKING INFORMATION
This course is assessed by means of formal examination and coursework. The final mark for the
module is calculated as: 33% Coursework + 67% Final Exam.
COURSEWORK AND FINAL EXAM
The coursework assessment for this module comprises of one compulsory assignment that will involve applying both the theoretical and computational methods taught throughout the lectures, workshops and labs. There is a non-binding word limit of 2,000 words. Note that while it is important to try and follow the word count, we will not penalize your work if you are under or over the limit (within reason of course). The assignment will be evaluated based on its' quality and not on its' length. Therefore, focus on answering the questions properly by using the technical tools learnt in the lectures, workshops and labs, and by employing solid economic intuition and references to support your answers. The assignment will be uploaded on Moodle by the end of Week 5 while the submission deadline is set for Week 10.
The final exam normally takes place in January. The exam assessment consists of overall 3 questions. Students are required to answer any 2 out of the 3 questions. All questions are equally weighted. You should not submit answers to more than the required number of questions. If you do, we will mark the questions in the order that they appear, up to the required number of questions in each section.
Please note that previous exam papers may not have operated under the same exam rubric or assessment weightings as those for the current academic year. The content of past papers may also be different.
FEEDBACK ON COURSEWORK AND FINAL EXAM
The coursework and final exams will be marked and returned to students with feedback comments
within 4 weeks of the coursework submission deadline / final exam date.
MARKING CRITERIA AND PENALTIES
PLEASE NOTE: Work submitted up to three days late with no agreed extension will receive a penalty of 10%. Work submitted more than three days late will receive a mark of 0 (zero). The definition of ‘days late’ includes weekend days; deadlines will normally be set such that the third day does not occur at a weekend. If the third day falls on a weekend, students will have until 10.00 am on Monday to hand in without receiving a further penalty. Extensions will be given only in the most exceptional of circumstances. Marking criteria can be found in the MBF Postgraduate Handbook on the MBF programme Moodle page.