Introduction to Economics
Code: 101577 ECTS Credits: 6| Degree | Type | Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2500244 East Asian Studies | FB | 1 |
Contact
- Name:
- Josep Oriol Roca Sagales
- Email:
- oriol.roca@uab.cat
Teaching groups languages
You can view this information at the end of this document.
Prerequisites
The student does not need any previous knowledge on Economics. It is required a minimal level of English in order to read texts in this language and a minimal knowledge of Arithmetics and Graphical Analysis at the level of Secondary School.
Objectives and Contextualisation
It is a first-semester and first-course subject, therefore it is a basic formation subject. This subject will provide the student with the basic tools of economic analysis that will let him or her to analyse and understand the historical and social facts of East Asia. These tools have also to let the student to follow properly the contents of the second-course subject Applied Economics of East Asia.
The educational goals of the subject can be summarised in the following points:
1. To acquire the basics of both micro and macroeconomics.
2. To get to know the basic international economic institutions.
3. To be able to do a critical analysis of the current economic situation.
4. To prove the acquisition of this knowledge through written essays and exams.
Competences
- Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
- Developing self-learning strategies.
- Ensuring the quality of one's own work.
- Having interpersonal skills.
- Knowing and comprehending the basic concepts of the functioning of markets, international trade, economic and international organizations and multinational companies on a macroeconomic and microeconomic level.
- Knowing and comprehending the structures and economic processes related preferably with Asia, the functioning of markets and businesses, and the regulations and operations of the different international monetary systems.
- Knowing and using the information and communication technology resources (ICT) in order to collect, produce, analyse and present information related to the East Asian Studies.
- Respecting the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
- Students must be flexible and capable of adapting to new circumstances.
Learning Outcomes
- Assessing the obtained results in the information search process in order to update the knowledge about economy.
- Developing critical thinking and reasoning and communicating them effectively both in your own and other languages.
- Developing self-learning strategies.
- Ensuring the quality of one's own work.
- Having interpersonal skills.
- Knowing and comprehending the basic concepts of the functioning of markets, international trade, economic and international organizations and multinational companies on a macroeconomic and microeconomic level.
- Knowing and comprehending the structures and economic processes related preferably with Asia, the functioning of markets and businesses, and the regulations and operations of the different international monetary systems.
- Respecting the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
- Students must be flexible and capable of adapting to new circumstances.
- Using different tools for specific purposes in the field of economy.
- Using the basic terminology of economy.
Content
Part 1. Microeconomy
Lesson 1. Economics and the Economics Science. Definition of Economics. The Economics Science. The main schools of economic thought.
Lesson 2. The Economic Activity. Human needs and their satisfaction. The exchange. The production and the productive factors. Scarcity, optimal eletion and inequality. What, how and for whom to produce?
Lesson 3. The Market Economy and the Basic Theory of Supply and Semand. The market economy. The subjects that intervene in the market. Demand, supply and prices.
Lesson 4. Different Types of Market. Perfect competition. The market failures of perfect competition. The concentration of capital: monopoly and oligopoly. Product differentiation: monopolistic competition.
Lesson 5. The Limits of the Market Economy. Public goods. Externalities. Efficiency vs equity: governement interventions. Pros and cons of the capitalist economy.
Lesson 6. The Factors Markets and Income Distribution. The retribution of productive factors. The retribution of natural resources, capital and labour. Income inequality.
Part 2. Macroeconomy
Lesson 7. Macroeconomic Magnitudes. The macroeconomic perspective. The measure of macroeconomic flows. The macroeconomic aggregates. The macroeconomic framework.
Lesson 8. Introduction to the Macroeconomic Analysis. The macroeconomic analysis. Aggregate supply and demand. Equilibrium and disequilibrium in macroeconomics. Macroeconomic models.
Lesson 9. The Domestic Demand. Consumption and Savings. Investment. The public sector and the economy. The fiscal policy and the aggregate demand.
Lesson 10. Money and the Monetary Policy. Money and financial system. Commercial banks and the creation of bankmoney. The Central Bank and the money market. Monetary policy.
Lesson 11.Unemployment and inflation. Definition and theories of unemployment. Definition and theories of inflation.
Lesson 12. International trade and international development. International trade. Balance of payments. Currencies and international payments. the problems of international development.
Activities and Methodology
| Title | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type: Directed | |||
| Lectures | 48 | 1.92 | 6, 7, 8 |
| Type: Supervised | |||
| Supervision of the essay and tutorials | 50 | 2 | 1, 6, 7, 3, 2, 10, 11, 4 |
| Type: Autonomous | |||
| Autonomous study of the provided materials | 48 | 1.92 | 1, 6, 7, 3, 2, 10, 11, 4 |
|
In-class 33% |
Lectures |
|
|
Tutorials |
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Supervised 33% |
Essay |
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Non-supervised 33% |
Study of provided materials |
Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.
Assessment
Continous Assessment Activities
| Title | Weighting | Hours | ECTS | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 30% | 0 | 0 | 1, 6, 7, 3, 2, 8, 5, 10, 11, 4 |
| Exam I | 40% | 2 | 0.08 | 6, 7, 3, 8, 9, 11, 4 |
| Exam II | 30% | 2 | 0.08 | 6, 7, 3, 8, 9, 11, 4 |
The assessment will be continous during the course, taking into account these items:
1. A written exam on the contents of the first part of the syllabus (date to be announced) (40%)
2. A written exam on the contents of the second part of the syllabus (date to be announced) (30%)
3. Essays done by the students under the supervision of the teacher (30%)
The exact weihght of the different items will be provided by the teachers during the course and the final mark will be an average of the marks obtained in these three items, with the corresponding weights.
Related matters
The above information on assessment, assessment activities and their weighting is merely a guide. The subject's lecturer will provide full information when teaching begins.
Review
When publishing final marks prior to recording them on students' transcripts, the lecturer will provide written notification of a date and time for reviewing assessment activities. Students must arrange reviews in agreement with the lecturer.
Missed/failed assessment activities
Students may retake assessment activities they have failed or compensate for any they have missed, provided that those they have actually performed account for a minimum of 66.6% (two thirds) of the subject's final mark and that they have a weighted average mark of at least 3.5. Under no circumstances may an assessment activity worth 100% of the final mark be retaken or compensated for. In case of retaking, maximum grade will be 5.
The lecturer will inform students of the procedure involved, in writing, when publishing final marks prior to recording them on transcripts. The lecturer may set one assignment per failed or missed assessment activity or a single assignment to cover a number of such activities.
Classification as "not assessable"
In the event of the assessment activities a student has performed accounting for just 25% or less of the subject's final mark, their work will be classified as "not assessable" on their transcript.
Misconduct in assessment activities
Students who engage in misconduct (plagiarism, copying, personation, etc.) in an assessment activity will receive a mark of “0” for the activity in question. In the case of misconduct in more than one assessment activity, the students involved will be given a final mark of “0” for the subject.
Students may not retake assessment activities in which they are found to have engaged in misconduct. Plagiarism is considered to mean presenting all or part of an author's work, whether published in print or in digital format, as one's own, i.e. without citing it. Copying is considered to mean reproducing all or a substantial part of another student's work. In cases of copying in which it is impossible to determine which of two students has copied the work of the other, both will be penalised.
More information: http://www.uab.cat/web/study-abroad/undergraduate/academic-information/evaluation/what-is-it-about-1345670077352.html
Single assessment
This subject is not suitable for single assessment.
Bibliography
basic bibliography:
Krugman, P., Wells, R. and Graddy, K. (2015) Fundamentos de Economía, Ed. Reverté.
Mankiw, G. (2010): Principios de Economía. Ed. Paraninfo.
Mochón, F. (2009): Economía. Teoría y Política. Ed. McGraw-Hill.
Samuelson, P. i Nordhaus, W. (2010): Economía. Ed. McGraw-Hill.
E-Book del Proyecto CORE: https://www.core-econ.org/
BM Banc Mundial http://www.worldbank.org
NNUU Nacions Unides http://www.un.org
OMC Organització Mundial de Comerç http://www.wto.org
UNCTAD http://www.unctad.org
CIDOB Fundació CIDOB http://www.cidob.org/
CEIC (Centro Español de Investigaciones Coreanas) http://www.uclm.es/area/fae/ceicws/home.asp
INE Instituto Nacional de Estadística http://www.ine.es/
FMI Fons Monetari Internacional http://www.imf.org
Elcano Real Instituto Elcano http://www.realinstitutoelcano
Software
It is not necessary to use specific software for course tracking.
Language list
| Name | Group | Language | Semester | Turn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (TE) Theory | 1 | Catalan | first semester | morning-mixed |
| (TE) Theory | 51 | Undefined | first semester | afternoon |