Economics 344: Economics of International Finance Block 5 -- Jan. 23 - Feb. 15, 2006

This course is concerned with international finance; a separate course deals with international trade.  One objective in this course is to develop an understanding of the role which money plays internationally, including foreign exchange markets and balance of payments accounting.  Another objective is to understand domestic adjustment mechanisms as they react to international conditions.  In all of this, money is to be viewed similar to its domestic role as a facilitator of real transactions.  However, it will become evident internationally as domestically that money sometimes hinders rather than facilitates transactions; this dimension of international finance is also part of the course.

A related objective is to evaluate in depth the various international monetary systems which have or do exist.  There is a growing concern that flexible exchange rates are not an adequate basis for a stable and efficient international monetary system, either multilaterally or for groups of countries such as Europe or NAFTA.  Further, there are increasing calls for a return to some more fixed exchange rate system, with some on the extreme end calling for a return to the Gold Standard.  It is essential that this debate be covered in this course, including the arguments for and against international monetary reform.

Updated: Jul. 13, 2006 by Pablo Navarro