GRA 6516 Economics for Finance

GRA 6516 Economics for Finance

Course code: 
GRA 6516
Department: 
Economics
Credits: 
6
Course coordinator: 
Alfonso Irarrazabal
Course name in Norwegian: 
Economics for Finance
Product category: 
Master
Portfolio: 
MSc in Finance
Semester: 
2024 Autumn
Active status: 
Active
Level of study: 
Master
Teaching language: 
English
Course type: 
One semester
Introduction

The course, which is an introductory economics course on master level, provides the students with the main concepts and models used in modern micro- and macroeconomic analysis.

Learning outcomes - Knowledge

Provide students with an understanding of the key areas of economic theory such as:

  • The nature of economic decisions of individual units and implications for the allocation of resources in the economy.
  • The mechanism that shape business cycles.
  • The impact of monetary and fiscal policy.
  • The economic principles of financial markets and the role of finance in economic development.
Learning outcomes - Skills
  • Students should be able to analyze how consumers and firms respond to incentives, how resources are allocated and their welfare consequences.
  • Students should possess skills to evaluate macro-economic policy.
  • Students should possess skills to analyze the economic forces driving financial markets.
General Competence
  • Through this course, students should develop basic understanding of how market outcomes are shaped by individual decisions, institutions and economic policy. 
  • The course provides the students with a thorough understanding of the microeconomic foundation of macroeconomic models. 
  • The course provides the students with a solid background on the economics forces driving financial markets.
Course content

Microeconomics

  1. Utility Maximization
  2. Demand Function and Substitution Effects
  3. Market Demand, Market Equilibrium, and Uncertainty
  4. Firm Behavior and Supply Function
  5. Firm Supply and Industry Equilibrium
  6. Imperfect Competition

Macroeconomics

  1. General Equilibrium with Production
  2. Fiscal Policy and the Role of Money
  3. The Neoclassical Model
  4. The New Keynesian Model: IS Curve and Policy
  5. IS-LM and the Role of Monetary Policy
  6. Open Economy Models
Teaching and learning activities

The course involves mostly lectures, where we rigorously go over the economic theory, through mathematical derivations and graphs. During classes, there will also be discussions on how the theory applies to real-world situations.

Software tools
No specified computer-based tools are required.
Additional information

It is the student’s own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class.

Honour Code
Academic honesty and trust are important to all of us as individuals, and represent values that are encouraged and promoted by the honour code system. This is a most significant university tradition. Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with the ideals of the honour code system, to which the faculty are also deeply committed. Any violation of the honour code will be dealt with in accordance with BI’s procedures for cheating. These issues are a serious matter to everyone associated with the programs at BI and are at the heart of the honour code and academic integrity. If you have any questions about your responsibilities under the honour code, please ask.

Qualifications

All courses in the Masters programme will assume that students have fulfilled the admission requirements for the programme. In addition, courses in second, third and/or fourth semester can have specific prerequisites and will assume that students have followed normal study progression. For double degree and exchange students, please note that equivalent courses are accepted.

Disclaimer

Deviations in teaching and exams may occur if external conditions or unforeseen events call for this.

Assessments
Assessments
Exam category: 
School Exam
Form of assessment: 
Written School Exam - digital
Exam/hand-in semester: 
First Semester
Weight: 
100
Grouping: 
Individual
Support materials: 
  • BI-approved exam calculator
  • Simple calculator
  • Bilingual dictionary
Duration: 
3 Hour(s)
Exam code: 
GRA 65162
Grading scale: 
ECTS
Resit: 
Examination when next scheduled course
Type of Assessment: 
Ordinary examination
Total weight: 
100
Sum workload: 
0

A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 6 ECTS credits corresponds to a workload of at least 160 hours.