Course

ECN330 Economic Integration and Trade Liberalization

Credits (ECTS):10

Course responsible:Roberto J. Garcia

Campus / Online:Taught campus Ås

Teaching language:Engelsk

Course frequency:Annually

Nominal workload:

250 hours of which:

40-50 hours are related to classroom activities (10-11 three-hour lecture and exercise sessions; 1 presentation session; and 1 final exam review); and

200 hours are related to self study, preparing for in-class exercises, and research for writing the semester project.

Teaching and exam period:This course starts in Autumn parallel. This course has teaching/evaluation in Autumn parallel. There are expected to be 10-11 3-hour sessions, twice a week for the first half of the semester. Exercises are held during lecture sessions. The semester project is due late in November and the individual defense of the project is to be arranged during the final week of lectures, before the final written exam.

About this course

The course is intended to advance international economics by bridging economic theory, as applied to cross-border trade and factor (labor and capital) movements, with international commerce and business. The rules on the use of trade policy (import/export taxes, quotas, and subsidies) and domestic regulations/programs (sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical restrictions, investment measures, subsidies, agricultural programs, intellectual property protection, etc.) are analyzed to study their effect production, consumption, and resource use. These rules, based on law or treaty, under the institutional frameworks of the European Union (EU) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) are analyzed for their consistency with economic theory and their implications for the business community and international commerce.

The course has direct relevance to policy analysis, international business, development studies, commodity and product market analysis, and agribusiness and food markets through its focus on trade policy/business regulation that affects trade and factor movement between domestic and international markets.

A full description of the course, lecture plan, course materials, exercises and past exams are available at the following website: arken.nmbu.no/~robega/ECN330

Learning outcome

Knowledge:

  • An understanding of the institutional differences between economic integration and trade liberalization as platforms to govern globalization (trade in goods and services), and international flows of capital and labor);
  • An understanding of how/when WTO rules and principles are based on and consistent with economic theory, and how those rules attempt to strike a balance between a government's right to regulate and a limit its ability to restrict trade (i.e., their costs in terms of limits on sovereignty and policy space);
  • An appreciation for how trade policy and domestic regulations differ for international trade in goods and the provision of services;
  • An appreciation for how business activity and regulation of such activity may be affected by WTO Agreements (Agriculture, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Technical Barriers to Trade, Subsidies and Countervailing Measures, Trade-Related Investment Measures, Intellectual Property Protection, etc.)
  • A firm foundation on the effects that trade policies have on trade (volumes and world prices) and the domestic economy (domestic prices, consumption and production) and the trade-policy equivalent effects that domestic regulations might have

Skills:

  • Can develop simple sectoral models to analyze the equivalence of trade policy or a domestic regulation in terms of its economic, trade and welfare effects to the country and assess whether the policy or regulation is appropriate to meet the stated policy objective(s);
  • Has the ability to assess and evaluate a country's trade policy or domestic regulation for compliance with rules and commitments as a member state of the WTO or EU;
  • Has the ability to relate theoretical concepts and the economic meaning of the rules that underpin WTO agreements to analyze the central features of trade disputes among member states

General competence:

  • The ability to work in small groups on problem sets related to international trade policy analysis to discuss the insights of the numerical results and/or graphical analysis;
  • The ability to work effectively as a team to analyze the underlying economic implications of policy to engage in critical discussion over the merits of the policy or domestic regulation;
  • The ability to orally present (and individually defend) the findings of a jointly written research project on an international trade dispute that requires reflection on the source of a dispute, the objective(s) of a policy, and the economics behind relevant WTO agreements.
  • Learning activities

    Learning activities include:

    1. Self study: Students are expected to read the assigned material for each lecture. There will be short video clips of lectures and tips for solving exercises, presentations slides and tutorials for graphical analysis.

    2. Lectures: There are expected to be 10 three-hour lecture sessions given intensively in the first half of the semester. Lecture materials are directly related to the exercises (problem sets) and models to be used for the semester project.

    3. Exercises: 2-3 group work exercise sessions and questions related to the problem set. Participation is mandatory. If the student does not attend the exercise session, the assignment must be submitted with answers to the related questions.

    4. Semester project: a written group work case study (or term paper) on the specifics of a trade dispute at the WTO must be submitted. The project requires application of the knowledge obtained through lectures and reading assignments by having students understand the objectives of a country's policy, analyze the trade implications of that policy, and assess the merits of the arguments of the parties involved in the trade dispute after weighing the objectives against the evidence of the policy's effects.

    The semester project is group work of 2-3 students who will jointly write a term paper or case study. An early draft of the paper must be submitted before the end of the teaching period and presented to the class. The draft will be given detailed feedback to help upgrade the final draft which is to be submitted at the end of the semester. The presentation will serve as a trial run of the oral defense of the final draft.

  • Teaching support

    The instructor is available during exercise sessions and maintains office hours during which the student can seek consultations with the instructor. Should the student prefer to have more feedback on exercises or want to follow up on points made during class lectures, office hours or e-mail contact are appropriate for that purpose.

    Once the lectures sessions are over midway through the semester, students will be working on their semester project. The instructor will be available for consultations during the time allocated for lectures. The instructor will accept drafts of the paper to edit and comment. After submission of the draft paper, each group can expect to have a written evaluation of the paper with general and specific comments on the quality of the work.

  • Prerequisites

    The course is designed to be relevant for students of business and economics and is open for students from outside the School of Economics and Business. It is a core course under the International Business and Food Markets specialization. Because of its relevance for analysis of commodity and food markets, the course should also appeal to students in developing studies and agricultural and food sciences.

    Students with some background in business or economics with an intermediate course in microeconomics (ECN210 Microeconomics II - Consumer, Producer, Market and Welfare) are eligible. Advanced bachelors' students with strong foundation in business or economics are also eligible. ECN230 International Trade, Policy and Development is very relevant course, but it is not a prerequisite. Some students have chosen to take the two courses in the same semester, but that is not necessary either. Students from outside the School of Economics and Business can be assured that the relevant basic economic concepts and trade policy analysis are reviewed before their application is extended in this course.

  • Recommended prerequisites
    A firm background in basic/intermediate microeconomics is useful. Relevant theory covered at the bachelor's level (e.g., trade theory, policy analysis, and theory of the second best) are refreshed and basic microeconomic concepts such as price and income elasticities, producer and consumer surplus, imperfect competition, etc. are reviewed as necessary.
  • Assessment method

    Portfolio assessment consisting of:

    * Final draft of a written group semester project paper (40%);

    * An individual oral defense of the semester project paper (20%); and

    * An oral final exam (40%).

    The individual oral defense of the semester project and the final oral exam are scheduled together, lasting about 30 minutes. Those who do not pass must retake the whole course. No re-examination is offered.



    Portfolio Karakterregel: Letter grades
  • Examiner scheme
    An external examiner will control the quality of the syllabus and questions for the oral examination. The external sensor will also evaluate the paper and be present for the oral defense of the paper.
  • Mandatory activity

    All mandatory activities must be approved. Required activities include:

    1. Exercises: Students are required to participate in group work on 2-3 problem sets and answer questions related to the solutions.The exercises are scheduled in the lecture plan. For students who do not attend class during exercise sessions and choose to work alone, the solution to the exercise and answers to the related questions can be submitted via e-mail. If a student has had their exercises approved the student is not required to redo them if retaking the course or the final exam.

    2. Semester project: the semester project requires a preliminary submission and presentation to help ensure the quality of the work before it is finalized. The preliminary draft ensures that the instructor has an opportunity to comment and give detailed feedback. The draft will also be presented in class as a group to help prepare students for the final oral defense of the paper. The preliminary submission and presentation must be approved.

    If the course is failed, the student will have to retake the course because a new preliminary draft must be submitted for the instructor to comment and give detailed feedback.

  • Notes
    The course is in English. Incoming students can contact student advisors at the School of Economics and Business (studieveileder-hh@nmbu.no) for admission to the course.
  • Teaching hours

    There are expected to be 10-11 three-hour lecture hours, twice per week (2 x 3 hour sessions) which includes time for in-class group work on exercises.

    Lectures end mid semester to give students time and space to work on their semester projects. Students work on semester project from mid-October to mid-November to submit first draft and give a group presentation of the paper.

    The final draft is submitted at the end of the lecture period for the instructor and external evaluator to have time to read the final draft and arrange an oral defense before the final written exam.

  • Reduction of credits
    Some overlap with ECN230 as it regards basic trade policy analysis.
  • Admission requirements
    Minimum requirements for entrance to higher education in Norway (generell studiekompetanse).