2020/2021

2020/2021

DM270

SECS-P/01 (POLITICAL ECONOMY)

DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES

PERCORSO COMUNE

1°

2nd semester (01/03/2021 - 28/05/2021)

9

60 lesson hours

Italian

ORAL TEST

MISSAGLIA MARCO (titolare) - 9 ECTS

Formally, there are no requirements. That said, however, having attended a course on basic macoeconomics certainly consitutes an advantage.
Anyway, points from 1) to 3) of the programme serve as a refresher on standard and basic macoeconomics in a closed economy framework

The course aims at poviding participants with the funadamental analytical tools to undestand (and fom an own idea about) the key international macroeconomic debates (single curency, secular stagnation, the balance of payments' constraint on growth , etc.). To this purpose, participants will have to learn both the "dominant" macro model for an open economy (the so-called "3-equation model" of the neoclassical synthesis) and the "heterodox" model developed by post-Keynesian authors.

1) National accounts in a closed economy
2) Financial accounts in a closed economy
3) From accounts to models:
3a) The "pure" neoclassical model (Say's law)
3b) The "pure" Keynesian model (principle of effective demand)
3c) Old and New Synthesis: IS-LM, AS-AD and the 3-equation model (IS-LM-PC)
4) National and Financial accounts in an open economy
5) Exchange rates and interrnational financial markets
6) The Mundell-Fleming model and the 3-equation model for an open ecoomy
7) Orthodox growth theory (on the evolution of natural output)
8) Activity, business cycle and growth in heterodox models (on the non-existence of natural output)
9) Hot issues: single curency, public debt, external debt macroeconomics and development in an open economy, secular stagnation
NB: points 1), 2) and 3) are to be taken as a refresher for those who aleady attended the course of Macroeconomics taught by professor Scervini at the Dipartimento di Scienze Politiche e Sociali.

Together with traditional frontal classes (eventually "blended", depending on the evolution of COVID-19), students will have to deal with various poblem sets: in some cases working collectively in the class, in others working alone at home (and disposing at a later stage of the correct version)

The orthodox approach will be studied using :
Blanchard, O., A. Amighini and F. Giavazzi, "Macroeconomics: A European Perspective", Pearson, 2017 (3rd edition)

The Italian vesion (fee choice for the students) is:
Blanchard, O., A. Amighini e F. Giavazzi, "Macroeconomia. Una prospettiva europea", il Mulino, 2016

A good text to go through the heterodox approach is
Brancaccio, E. and A. Califano, "Anti-Blanchard Macroeconomics", Edward Elgar, 2018

The Italian vesion is:
Brancaccio, E, "Anti-Blanchard. Un approccio comparato allo studio della macroeconomia", Franco Angeli, terza edizione

The slides of each class (in English) will be regularly published on the platform KIRO. They are especially useful fo those unable to attend the course, but eveyone is encouraged to use them for personal study.

The exam is written, with some theoretical questions and some exercises.
Those willing to improve the note may try an oral exam as well (on demand, this can be done in English)

To attend or not to attend?

Attending is always a big plus, especially when some complicated technicalities are to be dealt with (and this is our case).
That said, all the relevant material (including exercises for the preparation of the exam) will be regularly published on the KIRO platform.