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2020/2021

Macroeconomics

Code: 102118 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2501231 Accounting and Finance OB 2 2
2501232 Business and Information Technology OB 3 1
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Francisco Obiols Homs
Email:
Francesc.Obiols@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
spanish (spa)
Some groups entirely in English:
Yes
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
No
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
Yes

Teachers

José Clemente Polo Andrés
Inmaculada Rico Delgado
Barbara Masi
Fabio Cerina

External teachers

Andreu López Espejo

Prerequisites

Introduction to Economics

Mathematics I

Mathematics II

Statistics I

Objectives and Contextualisation

This course proposes and discusses the main tools and instruments from both the theoretical and the empirical

point of view, to be used in the analysis of the evolution of an economic systrem. Main themes of study are

Production, and the distribution and allocation of income over time, and its relationship with other agreggate

(macro-economic) variables of interest.

Competences

    Accounting and Finance
  • Analysing, summarising and assessing information.
  • Efficiently searching information, discriminating irrelevant information.
  • Quantifying and assessing the cost and profitability of the investment and financing operations, including the tax incidence in the accounting and financial operations.
  • Students must be able to adapt to changing environments.
    Business and Information Technology
  • Appropriately drawing up technical reports according to the customer's demands.
  • Carrying out different oral presentations for different audiences.
  • Communicating orally and in written form and at a technical level in Catalan, Spanish and another language, preferably English.
  • Demonstrating a comprehension of the principles of economy and main theories and models in order to explain the economic behaviour on a microeconomic and macroeconomic level.
  • Developing self-learning strategies.
  • Students must be capable of analysing, summarising, organising, planning and solving problems and making decisions.
  • Working in teams, sharing knowledge and communicating it to the rest of the team and the organisation.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analysing the effects of disturbances in demand and supply in closed and open economies.
  2. Analysing, summarising and assessing information.
  3. Appropriately drawing up technical reports according to the customer's demands.
  4. Calculating the stationary state in the Solow model and determining the balance in the IS-LM and Mundell-Fleming models.
  5. Carrying out different oral presentations for different audiences.
  6. Communicating orally and in written form and at a technical level in Catalan, Spanish and another language, preferably English.
  7. Describing the components of the gross domestic product and the national income.
  8. Describing the concept of neutrality of money and its relationship to the price level.
  9. Describing the determinants of the individual job offer and job search.
  10. Describing the relationship between unemployment and inflation.
  11. Developing self-learning strategies.
  12. Efficiently searching information, discriminating irrelevant information.
  13. Naming the aspects that affect economic growth.
  14. Naming the aspects that affect income disparities.
  15. Students must be able to adapt to changing environments.
  16. Students must be capable of analysing, summarising, organising, planning and solving problems and making decisions.
  17. Working in teams, sharing knowledge and communicating it to the rest of the team and the organisation.

Content

1. Introduction

1.1 Macroeconomic variables.

1.2 Gross domestic Product (GDP).

1.3 Inflation and the cost of living: GDP deflator and CPI.

1.4 The circular flow of incomo: Production, distribution and expenditue.

 

2. Growth and economic growth models.

2.1 Growth and growth accounting.

2.2 Capital accumulation, technological progress; Solow's model.

2.3 Emprical evidence: absolute and conditional convergence.

2.4 A simple model of endogenous growth.

 

3. The labor market

3.1 Main variables

3.2 A simple model of the natural rate of unemployment

3.3 Frictional unemployment

3.4 Structural unemployment

 

4. Economic fluctuations

4.1 Economic cycles.

4.2 The aggregate demand curve.

4.3 Aggregate supply in the short and long run.

 

5. The IS-LM model IS-LM and the aggregae demand curve.

5.1 The Keynesian cross model.

5.2 Multipliers and fiscal policy

5.3 The IS curve.

5.4 Financial assets, money market and the LM curve.

5.5 Effects of monetary and fiscal policies in the IS-LM model

5.6 The aggregate demand curve.

 

6. Macroeconomics in an open economy.

6.1 Exchange rates and exchange rates regimes.

6.2 The Mundell-Fleming model.

6.3 Effects of fiscal and monetary policies in an open economy.

 

Methodology

This course combines lectures and personal work by means of solving problem sets and other assignements.

To considerer:

- Teaching planned for the subject is on campus teaching

- The proposed teaching methodology may undergo some modifications according to restrictions imposed by the health authorities o non-campus courses

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Lectures. 33 1.32 1, 4, 13, 14, 8, 7, 9, 10
Problem sets and discussion in groups. 11.5 0.46 1, 2, 12, 4, 13, 14, 6, 8, 7, 9, 10, 11, 5, 3, 15, 16, 17
Type: Supervised      
Tutorial and office hours. 20 0.8 2, 12, 11, 5, 3, 16, 17
Type: Autonomous      
Readings. 20 0.8 1, 2, 12, 4, 6, 8, 7, 9, 10, 11, 3, 16
Study. Preparation of exercices and idiscusion in groups. 60.5 2.42

Assessment

Evaluation

The course will be evaluated continuously by means of several partial evaluation activities, in addition to a final

exam. The weight of these components in the final grade will be given as follows:

- 50 % to other partial evaluation activities,

- 50 % to the final exam.

 

Partial evaluation activities (50 %):

Partial evaluation willl include the following activities: 1) attendance and participation in lectures and practical

classes (5 %); 2) solving additional multiple choice questions from a list handed out to students (5%); 3)

presentation of one page summary and evaluation of a short paper published in an economic newspaper on

any topic related to Macroeconomics I (5%); 4) a mid-term exam whose duration will not exceed 90 minutes

(25%). None of the evaluation activities will reduce (or eliminate) the material under evaluation in the final

exam.

 

Final exam: (50 %)

It includes all the materials of the course. The exam is designed to force the student to perform a final learning

effort to consolidate the previously acquired knowledge. The duration of the final exam will not exceed 3 hours.

 

It is compulsory for all students to write the final exam and any other partial evaluation activity as they are

scheduled in the time-table of the course. In no case it will be possible to have extraordinary evaluations in

dates not fixed before-hand in the corresponding time-table.

 

In case the final grade corresponding to the weights mentioned above is 5 or higher, the course is considered

aproved and it wont be possible to re-evaluate it. In case the final grade is lower than 3,5, the student will have

to re-take the course in the following year. For those students with final grades higher than 3,5 but smaller than

5 there will be a re-evaluation activity. The professors of the course will announce the type of the retake proof

thta will take place in the last week of the semester. The grade of the retake activity will bequalitative and it will

be one of the only two possible options: either PASS or FAIL. In case the student obtains a PASS, the course

is considered aproved and the student will receive a numerical grade equal to 5. In case the result of the retake

proof is FAIL, the course is considered not aproved, and the numerical grade given to the studnet will be the

one obtained before the retake activity.

 

A student will be considered "No evaluable" only in case she/he has not participated in any evaluation activity.

Hence, if the student participates in one of the evaluation activities then she/he cannot be considered as "No

evaluable".

 

Calendar of evaluation activities

The dates of the evaluation activities (midterm exams, exercises in the classroom, homework assignments,

etc.) will be announced well in advance during the semester.

The date of the final exam is scheduled in the assessment calendar of the Faculty.

"The dates of evaluation activities cannot be modified, unless there is an exceptional and duly justified reason

why an evaluation activity cannot be carried out. In this case, the degree coordinator will contact both the

teaching staff and the affected student, and a new date will be scheduled within the same academic period to

make up for the missed evaluation activity." Section 1 of Article 115. Calendar of evaluation activities

(Academic Regulations UAB). Students of the Faculty of Economics and Business, who in accordance with

the previous paragraph need to change an evaluation activity date must process the request by filling out an

Application for exams' reschedule

https://eformularis.uab.cat/group/deganat_feie/application-for-exams-reschedule

 

Grade revision process

After all grading activities have ended, students will be informed of the date and way in which the course

grades will be published. Students will be also be informed of the procedure, place, date and time of grade

revision following University regulations.

 

Retake Process

"To be eligible to participate in the retake process, it is required for students to have been previously been

evaluated for at least two thirds of the total evaluation activities of the subject." Section 3 of Article 112 ter.

The recovery (UAB Academic Regulations). Additionally, it is required that the student to have achieved an

average grade of the subject between 3.5 and 4.9.

 

The date of the retake exam will be posted in the calendar of evaluation activities of the Faculty. Students who

take this exam and pass, will get a grade of 5 for the subject. If the student does not pass the retake, the grade

will remain unchanged, and hence, student will fail the course.

 

Irregularities in evaluation activities.

In spite of other disciplinary measures deemed appropriate, and in accordance with current academic

regulations, "in the case that the student makes any irregularity that could lead to a significant variation in the

grade of an evaluation activity, it will be graded with a 0, regardless of the disciplinary process that can be

instructed. In case of various irregularities occur in the evaluation of the same subject, the final grade of this

subject will be 0". Section 10 of Article 116. Results of the evaluation. (UAB Academic Regulations).

 

The proposed evaluation activies may undergo some changes according to the restrictions imposed by the health authorities o non-campus courses

 

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Final exam 50% of the final grade 2 0.08 1, 2, 12, 4, 13, 14, 6, 8, 7, 9, 10, 11, 5, 3, 15, 16, 17
Partials 40% of the final grade 1.5 0.06 1, 2, 12, 4, 13, 14, 6, 8, 7, 9, 10, 11, 16
Problem sets and homeworks 10% of the final grade 1.5 0.06 1, 2, 12, 4, 13, 14, 8, 7, 9, 10, 11, 5, 3, 17

Bibliography

Mankiw, N. G., Macroeconomics, 8th edition, 2011. Barcelona: Antoni Bosch Editor.

Blanchard, O., A. Amighini y F. Giavazzi, Macroeconomics. A European Perspective, 2013. New York:

Pearson.