- Inter-faculty Studies in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Computer Science
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Mathematics
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Computer Science
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Mathematics
Introduction to Macroeconomics: an Internet course) 2400-INTER-WMAK-OG
The course is run on the internet educational platform COME: http://www.kampus.uw.edu.pl. After registering for the course at USOS, it is required to register at COME and log in into the course before the classes start.
Weekly schedule:
Week 1.
The subject and methods of macroeconomics
Mico versus macroeconomic approach. Genesis and the definition of macroeconomics. Markets in the macroeconomic perspective - aggregation of the economic activity. Basic concepts: economic growth, business cycle, inflation, unemployment. Circular flow of money and product. Classical versus keynesian approach - demand side versus supply side factors. Macroeconomics of the short and long run. Basic relations: Phillips curve and Okun law.
Week 2.
Measuring the value of economic activity
The gross domestic product and its components: value added, nett GDP, gross GDP, national income, personal income, disposable income, consumption, investment, government spending, balance of trade. Savings and investment. Economic activity, labour market, measuring labour aggregates, participation and unemployment.
Week 3.
Money and prices. The exchange rate and the balance of payments
Money and its functions. Relation between money and prices. Inflation and its measuring on consumption goods markets and product markets. Real versus nominal values, relative prices, real wages and real interest rates, real GDP.
The domestic economy with relation to world markets. The balance of payments and international transactions. Nominal and real exchange rates as prices of international transactions.
Week 4.
Aggregate expenditure and equilibrium value of product in the simple two-sector model. The impact of the public sector on the equilibrium product
Simple two-sector keynesian model of the economy. Keynesian consumption function, investment function. Simple keynesian multiplier. The macroeconomic role of the state. Public sector revenues and spending and the aggregate expenditure. Functions of the taxes. The balance of public sector and public debt. Balanced budget multiplier. Automatic versus discretionary stabilizers of the business cycle.
Week 5.
International trade and the equilibrium product
Determinants of exports and imports. Function of nett exports in the aggregate expenditure function. Keynesian multiplier in the open economy. Current account balance and capital flows. Capital flows and the savings and investments in an open economy.
Week 6.
Income, aggregate expenditure and the interest rate in a closed economy
Investment decisions of firms. Interest rate and investment spending. Goods market equilibrium and the interest rate. The IS schedule and its interpretation. The analysis of IS shifts and turns.
Week 7.
Money market equilibrium and equilibrium product
Money demand and its determinants. Creation of money and money supply. Monetary base and money creation multiplier. The role of the central banks and tools of money supply control. Nominal and real interest rate. The money market equilibrium and the LM schedule. The analysis of LM shifts and its interpretation.
Week 8.
The IS-LM model
Goods market and money market equilibrium. Geometric and algebraic analysis of the model. Transmission mechanisms of fiscal and monetary policy.
Week 9.
AD – AS model. Labour market
Aggregate spending and prices. AD schedule - the analysis of its slope and shifts. The labour market and aggregate supply (AS). Wages and prices and the aggregate supply. Equilibrium unemployment rate. Labour market adjustment (in the short and long run) to aggreagte demand fluctuations.
Week 10.
Macroeconomic policy in the short and long run. The sources of economic growth. Demand versus supply shocks.
Type of course
Prerequisites (description)
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the course students will have the knowledge on:
- formation and processes of basic categories of macroeconomics: gross domestic product, prices, unemployment and inflation;
- national income accounting system and the balance of payments;
- determinants of the product in the short and long run;
- determinants of prices and inflation and its consequences;
- sources of economic growth;
- the role of maroeconomic policy on the basic economic categories;
Students should be able to:
- interpret and explain the reasons for short run product fluctuations;
- analyse reasons of unemployment and inflation and their costs in the macroeconomic perspective;
- describe the economic reality using basic macroeconomic models;
- understand the effects of various macroeconomic shocks for households, firms and the public sector;
- evaluate the effects of macroeconomic policy: fiscal and monetary in the short and long run;
- understand the links between economies in the international context;
- perceive curennt economic events through the macroeconomic lense and be able to comment them using macroeconomic theory.
Furthermore the course will give the student opportunity to practice own scheduled work in a systematic setting, to be fair and punctual, which is forced by the nature of the e-learning type of the course.
Assessment criteria
In each topic unit student can collect up to 20 points for homework. Homework assingments consist of quiz tasks and open questions which illustrate and summarize the contents of underluying topic. Additionally students are invited to take part in open forum discussions on selected subject, mostly referring to current economic events in the world and Polish economy. Each homework assignment must be sent back to instructor via e-learning platform within 14 days without the possibility of sending all assignment on the last day of the course. Gathering at least 60% homework points is a prerequisite for open-book exam, which will verify each students semester work. The exam is a multiple choice questions test and is the open-book exam. Final grade will be based both on homework points and exam score with equal weights.
Bibliography
Required:
Begg, D., Fischer, S. i Dornbusch, R., Ekonomia, vol II: Macroeconomics.
Additional:
Bednarski, M. i Wilkin, J. (red.), Ekonomia dla prawników i nie tylko, Wydawnictwo Prawnicze Lexis-Nexis, Warszawa 2003, rozdziały 12-17.
Smith, P. i Begg, D., Ekonomia, tom III: Zbiór zadań. PWE Warszawa 1999 (lub późniejsze).
Additional information
Information on level of this course, year of study and semester when the course unit is delivered, types and amount of class hours - can be found in course structure diagrams of apropriate study programmes. This course is related to the following study programmes:
- Inter-faculty Studies in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Computer Science
- Bachelor's degree, first cycle programme, Mathematics
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Computer Science
- Master's degree, second cycle programme, Mathematics
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: