International Trade

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

Economics 5752 is a master’s level course in applied international trade. The first part of the course will review core theories that explain why countries trade, what countries trade, and the aggregate and distributional consequences. The theoretical models we review will range from basic gravity models, to Ricardian and Heckscher-Ohlin models, and end with cutting edge theories of heterogeneous firms with imperfect competition. The second part of the course covers international trade policy instruments, institutions and its political economy to provide students with an understanding of economic opportunities and the major policy issues and challenges facing the global trading system. Along with core topics of the welfare impacts of tariffs and quotas, other special topics addressed in this portion of the course include the interaction of trade and non-governmental organizations, historical and modern examples of import substitution policies, and environmental implications of trade policies.