Fall 2025 - ECON 842 G100
International Monetary Economics (4)
Class Number: 2057
Delivery Method: In Person
Overview
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Course Times + Location:
Sep 3 – Dec 2, 2025: Mon, 9:30 a.m.–12:20 p.m.
Burnaby
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Instructor:
Minjie Deng
minjied@sfu.ca
Description
CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:
International finance and open-economy macroeconomics, including theories of current account dynamics and international capital flows, open-economy business cycle, international trade and exchange rate, financial crisis and sovereign default.
COURSE DETAILS:
This is a graduate-level course, designed to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the key concept, theories, and policy issues related to international finance. The course focuses on introducing key concepts and theories in international finance, such as current account, net international investment position, terms of trade, trade balance, tariffs, uncertainty, exchange rate, purchasing power parity, international capital market integration, and capital controls. The course also aims to familiarize students with how to conduct research in international finance and work on original research questions that they are interested in pursuing in their PhD or MA thesis.
Course outline:
Week 1 (Sep 8): International Capital Flows
Week 2 (Sep 15): Current Account and Great Moderation
Week 3 (Sep 22): Terms of Trade and Tariffs
Week 4 (Sep 29): Current Account in Production Economy
Week 5 (Oct 6): Uncertainty
Week 6 (Oct 13): No Class (Thanksgiving Day)
Week 7 (Oct 20): International Transmission of Shocks
Week 8 (Oct 27): Real Exchange Rate and Purchasing Power Parity
Week 9 (Nov 3): International Capital Market Integration
Week 10 (Nov 10): Capital Controls
Week 11 (Nov 17): Midterm Exam
Week 12 (Nov 24): Research Question Presentations
Week 13 (Dec 1): Paper Presentations
Grading
- Participation 5%
- Midterm exam 40%
- Research question presentation 15%
- Paper presentation 15%
- Research proposal 25%
Materials
REQUIRED READING:
Textbooks are not required.
RECOMMENDED READING:
- Uribe and Stephanie Schmitt-Grohe, Princeton University Press, 2017, “Open economy macroeconomics”.
- Stephanie Schmitt-Grohé, Martín Uribe, and Michael Woodford, 2022, “International Macroeconomics: A Modern Approach”
REQUIRED READING NOTES:
Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.
Graduate Studies Notes:
Important dates and deadlines for graduate students are found here: http://www.sfu.ca/dean-gradstudies/current/important_dates/guidelines.html. The deadline to drop a course with a 100% refund is the end of week 2. The deadline to drop with no notation on your transcript is the end of week 3.
Registrar Notes:
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS
At SFU, you are expected to act honestly and responsibly in all your academic work. Cheating, plagiarism, or any other form of academic dishonesty harms your own learning, undermines the efforts of your classmates who pursue their studies honestly, and goes against the core values of the university.
To learn more about the academic disciplinary process and relevant academic supports, visit:
- SFU’s Academic Integrity Policy: S10-01 Policy
- SFU’s Academic Integrity website, which includes helpful videos and tips in plain language: Academic Integrity at SFU
RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION
Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.