Uluslararası İktisat
aacar@gsu.edu.tr
Content
Objective
This course aims to present the main mechanisms and theories that help explain international trade and its organization.
It specifically aims to:
- Understand the economic foundations of international trade;
- Explain the determinants of comparative advantages and international specialization;
- Master the main traditional models of international trade, particularly the Ricardian model and the Heckscher-Ohlin-Samuelson (HOS) model;
- Understand the limitations of traditional models and the new theories of international trade;
- Analyze the role of technology, innovation, economies of scale, and product differentiation in international trade;
- Understand the importance of geographical distance, global value chains, and firm heterogeneity;
- Analyze the economic effects of protectionism and different trade policies;
- Understand the debates between free trade and protectionism;
- Study the mechanisms governing the organization of world trade through trade liberalization, multilateralism, regionalism, and foreign direct investment;
- Develop the ability to use economic analysis tools to interpret major contemporary issues in international trade.
Course Content
The course presents the main concepts, mechanisms, and theories of international economics.
It covers, in succession:
- The foundations of international trade and the gains associated with specialization;
- Neoclassical theories of international trade and the sources of comparative advantage;
- New theories of international trade, which introduce technological progress, economies of scale, product differentiation, geography, and firm heterogeneity;
- The economic effects of trade policies and protectionism;
- The debates surrounding free trade and government intervention;
- The institutional and economic mechanisms that structure global trade;
- Trade liberalization, multilateralism, and resistance to trade openness;
- Trade regionalism and regional economic unions;
- Foreign direct investment (FDI) and its role in the international organization of production;
- The effects of the globalization of trade and production on national economies.
Course Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Define and explain the main concepts of international economics.
- Identify the main sources of comparative advantage.
- Explain and interpret the Ricardian model.
- Analyze the mechanisms of the Heckscher-Ohlin-Samuelson (HOS) model.
- Understand the effects of trade openness on production, consumption, prices, and factor rewards.
- Identify the limitations of traditional models of international trade.
- Explain the main new theories of international trade.
- Understand the role of technology and innovation in international specialization.
- Explain the effects of economies of scale and product differentiation on international trade.
- Understand the role of distance, geography, and market access in international trade.
- Explain the formation of global production chains and the international fragmentation of the production process.
- Understand why firms are heterogeneous and how trade openness affects firms differently.
- Measure and interpret the main effects of a tariff using surplus analysis.
- Identify the main economic and political arguments in favor of protectionism.
- Understand how strategic trade policy works.
- Analyze the main stages of the liberalization of world trade.
- Understand the main characteristics of GATT and the WTO.
- Analyze the effects of regional trade agreements and distinguish between trade creation and trade diversion.
- Understand the determinants and effects of foreign direct investment (FDI).
- Apply the models studied in the course to analyze contemporary issues in international trade.
Teaching and Learning Methods
- Lectures (CM): Theoretical presentation of concepts, formal derivations of models, and graphical analysis.
- Application exercises: Solving theoretical problems and modeling exercises (autarky vs. free trade, surplus calculations, Grubel-Lloyd index, etc.).
- Quizzes
References
Krugman, P. R., Obstfeld, M., & Melitz, M. J. Économie internationale. Pearson France.
Guillochon, B., Kawecki, A., Peltrault, F., & Venet, B. (2016). Économie internationale. Cours et exercices corrigés. Dunod.
Feenstra, R. C. & Taylor, A. M., International Trade.
Weekly Contents
| Week | Weekly Contents |
|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction to International Economics |
| 2 | Theory of Comparative Advantage |
| 3 | The Ricardian Model |
| 4 | The Heckscher-Ohlin-Samuelson (HOS) Model |
| 5 | New Trade Theories: Technology and Innovation |
| 6 | Economies of Scale and International Trade |
| 7 | Product Differentiation and Intra-Industry Trade |
| 8 | Geography, Global Value Chains and Heterogeneous Firms |
| 9 | The Effects of Protectionism |
| 10 | Arguments for Protectionism and Strategic Trade Policy |
| 11 | Trade Liberalization and the Global Trading System |
| 12 | Resistance to Liberalization, Regional Integration and FDI |
| 13 | General Review and Exercises I |
| 14 | General Review and Exercises II |
Assessment System
| Activities | Number | Contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Contribution of in-term studies to overall grade | 1 | 50 |
| Contribution of final exam to overall grade | 1 | 50 |
| Total | 2 | 100 |
| Activities | Number | Contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Assignments | 0 | 0 |
| Presentation | 0 | 0 |
| Midterm Examinations (including preparation) | 1 | 45 |
| Project | 0 | 0 |
| Laboratory | 0 | 0 |
| Other Applications | 0 | 0 |
| Quiz | 0 | 0 |
| Term Paper/ Project | 0 | 0 |
| Portfolio Study | 0 | 0 |
| Reports | 0 | 0 |
| Learning Diary | 0 | 0 |
| Thesis/ Project | 0 | 0 |
| Seminar | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 |
| Make-up | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 45 |
Relation of Proficiency
| No | Program Learning Outcomes | Contribution | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| 1 | Demonstrate a basic knowledge of different economic theories and main discussions driving current theoretical approaches | X | ||||
| 2 | Demonstrate ability to use basic qualitative and quantitative methods to asses different economic questions of applied fields | |||||
| 3 | Show a sound understanding of current economic discussions and problems | X | ||||
| 4 | Have an effective and clear communication in written and oral formats in different public and professional contexts. | |||||
| 5 | Demonstrate basic knowledge of the world economic history and a sound knowledge of the Turkish economic history | |||||
| 7 | Demonstrate knowledge of standard quantitative techniques and empirical models used in economics | |||||
| 8 | Show ability to apply basic economic theory to an applied topic | X | ||||
| 9 | Show a basic understanding of analytical methods, both theory- and model-based | X | ||||
| 10 | Show ability to use economic concepts to discuss current economic issues | X | ||||
| 11 | Reason logically and work analytically | X | ||||
| 12 | Show awareness on social aspects of the economics in different applied and theoretical fields | X | ||||
| 13 | Identify appropriate economic models to analyse problems | X | ||||
| 16 | Show understanding of basic statistical and econometric concepts and ability to apply basic concepts to own empirical work | |||||
| 17 | Demonstrate a sound knowledge of the current economic issues in Turkey and a general knowledge of the issues in the world economy | |||||
ECTS
| Activities | Number | Period | Total Workload |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class Hours | 14 | 3 | 42 |
| Working Hours out of Class | 14 | 3 | 42 |
| Assignments | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Presentation | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Midterm Examinations (including preparation) | 1 | 10 | 10 |
| Project | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Laboratory | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Applications | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Final Examinations (including preparation) | 1 | 20 | 20 |
| Quiz | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Term Paper/ Project | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Portfolio Study | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reports | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Learning Diary | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thesis/ Project | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seminar | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Make-up | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yıl Sonu | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hazırlık Yıl Sonu | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hazırlık Bütünleme | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total Workload | 114 | ||
| Total Workload / 25 | 4.56 | ||
| Credits ECTS | 5 | ||