Economics and Finance

“Economics and Finance” (CLEF)

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A very basic knowledge of algebra and logic is required. Once this is given, we will illustrate the theory of sequences and series, in order to better understand the nature of numbers. Discrete combinatorics, finite probability and introduction to limits will be the main outcomes. Summing up, a short introduction to the elementary theory of numbers and discrete mathematics.

The aim of the course is to provide knowledge on accounting and, more specifically, on financial accounting. At the end of the course, students will be able to understand financial statements and the fact that these are the product of the financial accounting process. They represent the means of communicating economic information about the organization to stakeholders who want to make decisions and inform judgments about the entity's financial position. In addition, students will be able to understand some fundamental financial statement analysis concepts and tools. Furthermore, students will develop knowledge on non-financial information. To integrate the skills and knowledge on sustainable reporting, students will examine and use guidelines for sustainability reporting and its measures for guiding organizations to a more sustainable future, understanding their economic, environmental and social impacts (as well as related consequences). Finally, students will be introduced to the concepts of Managerial Accounting.

The course will explore the following topics:

1. 
   Introduction, syllabus, schedule and exam. Overview on Accounting: Financial Accounting, Social and Environmental Accounting, Managerial Accounting and Auditing. Chapter 1
   
2. 
   Financial statements and accounting concepts and principles. Chapter 2
   
3. 
   Fundamental interpretations made from financial statements data: description of some of the basic analytical tools that allow financial statement users to make fundamental interpretations of a company's financial position and results of operations. Chapter 3 and 9
   
4. 
   The bookkeeping process and transaction analysis. Chapter 4
   
5. 
   Financial statement analysis. Chapter 11
   
6. 
   Introduction to Social and Environmental Accounting: extended performance reporting (such as sustainability reporting). Additional material will be provided.
   
7. 
   Managerial Accounting and Cost-Volume-Profits Relationships. How, through Managerial Accounting, economic and financial information are employed to support the management decision-making process Chapter 12
   

Marshall, McManus and Viele, (2014), Accounting. What the numbers mean, 10th Edition, McGraw-Hill International Edition. A short version of the book might be bought on line. (Details will be given on the first day of class). Further material might be provided.

The teaching approach is based on a combination of lectures, interactive classes, seminars, exercises, discussion questions and case studies. 

Group Class presentation

This part of the assessment involves students working in-group to research, prepare and present to the class on a range of different topics. The class presentation should be undertaken in PowerPoint format; a hard copy of your slides and the related report, should be submitted to the lecturer for assessment purposes, as well as an electronic copy, by the 3 of December 2014. The related report must be maximum 1500 words, further than tables. This examination is worth 6 points (1/5) of the final mark of this course.

End of term examinations      

A final two-hour examination will be held at the end of each term and will consist of a number of essay questions, multiple choices questions related to different elements of the syllabus, as well as exercises. At the end of each term, the term examination is worth 12 points (2/5) of the final mark. During class, a potential list of essay questions will be anticipated.

For students that will not attend the course there will be the option to sit a written four-hour exam, worth 30 points.

Teaching tools

Books, exercises, case-studies, discussion points, etc.

See the website of Farneti Federica

Students will be able to master a number of mathematical techniques regarding functions and matrices, useful in economics and finance. Of particular interest are:

1. 
   Being able to describe the behavior of a function using graphs
   
2. 
   Having a full understanding of the meaning of limits, continuity, differentiation and its connections with optimization.
   
3. 
   Understanding integration and its relation with areas.
   
4. 
   Understanding infinite sums.
   
5. 
   Understanding how to approximate a function.
   
6. 
   Dealing with linear transformations in n-dimensional spaces.
   

The course is organized in two parts, the Module in the first Semester (60 hrs) and the Module in the second Semester (30 hrs).

In the first part, the topics covered are the following: Functions of one variable, Derivatives, Graphs, Integrals, Sequences, Series, Functions of several variables. In the second part topics are Linear Algebra, namely Vectors, Matrices, Determinants, Linear Systems, Eigenvalues.

Readings/Bibliography

A reference textbook is "Calculus: a Complete Course" by Robert Adams and Christopher Essex. Publisher: Pearson Education Canada; 8^th edition (2013).

A very detailed list of the topics on which the exam questions are based will be provided at the end of each part of the course.

Teaching methods

Class Lecturing with the aid of blackboard and chalk, an overhead projector, and a computer. Each week, the teacher will set some exercises as homework for the students. The students are requested to get a copy of the book, as most of the material for the exercises of the course is to be found in it.

The exam consists of a set of written questions. The mark is out of 30 points, and the minimum required to pass is 18/30. Only if necessary, the written part will be integrated by an oral exam.

Students are allowed to bring one copy of the book and personal notes in the exam. NO electronic devices.

Teaching Tools

Standard lectures

The course aims at providing students with an up-to-date understanding of the main aspects and trends of the world economy during the 20th and early 21st centuries. At the end of the course, students should understand the origin of the most important economic institutions and the features of the economic cycles so far experienced by the world economy.  Topics addressed in more detail will include the failure of the command economies, the construction of the European Union, the evolution and transformation of financial systems, the globalization.

The course is organized in two parts, the first taught by Vera Negri Zamagni and the second by Patrizia Battilani. In the first part, students will be offered a general overview of the evolution of the world economy across the XIX and XX centuries, with special focus on Europe. The topics covered are the following:

1. 
   The pre-industrial economy and the preparation of the industrial take-off
   
2. 
   The British industrial revolution and the process of imitation
   
3. 
   The second industrial revolution, the rise of the USA and the gold standard
   
4. 
   World War I and its effects
   
5. 
   The 1929 crisis and World War II
   
6. 
   Reconstruction and the new international economic order: Bretton Woods, IMF, Gatt, World Bank and the Marshall Plan
   
7. 
   The golden age (1950s to 1973)
   
8. 
   The process of economic integration in Europe
   
9. 
   The return of instability and the “financialization” of the world
   
10. 
    New protagonists: the rise of Asia.
    

1. 
   The first globalization
   
2. 
   The second e third globalization
   
3. 
   The rising and fall of state-owned enterprises
   
4. 
   The emergence of competition laws
   
5. 
   The building of modern welfare systems
   
6. 
   The developing of National Financial System
   
7. 
   The capitals of capital: the rise of stock exchanges
   
8. 
   Financial innovations and deregulation over the last decades
   

For the part taught by prof. Vera Zamagni: R. Cameron, L. Neal, The concise economic history of the world, OUP, 2003, from ch. 5 onwards. For the part taught by Patrizia Battilani, a reading list will available at the beginning of the course.

See the website of Patrizia Battilani and Negri Vera

The course aims at providing students with a solid and Comprehensive background to understand the most important macroeconomic issues as the ones currently met in the policy debates. At the end of the course, participants will be able to grasp and analyze macroeconomic phenomena (like growth, inflation, unemployment) in the short and in the long-run, the working of monetary and fiscal policy, the pros and cons of European integration and the eurozone.

A strong analytical approach will be at the basis of all learning activities. Also, there will be frequent reference to policy events and to real-world examples.
Course contents

1. Introduction and policy issues

2. National Accounting

3. Growth

4. Aggregate Supply and Demand

5. The Phillips Curve

6. Unemployment

7. Inflation

8. Income and Spending

9. The IS-LM Model

10. The open economy

11. Consumption and Saving

12. The monetary market

13. The Central Bank

14. Basic Finance

15. National debt

16. Recession and depression

17. The eurozone

The textbook is R. Dornbush, S. Fisher, R. Startz, Macroeconomics,

McGraw-Hill, Twelfth Edition, 2014 (chapters 1-18, 20-21)

Additional material is available in Campus on my page

Traditional front teaching

Written exam made of exercises and questions (90 minutes)

See the website of Delbono Flavio

At the end of the course students should understand the principles and methods of economic, and specifically microeconomic, analysis. They will have been introduced to the concept of economic rationality as it applies to individuals and firms. Topics addressed in more detail will include the form of utility and production functions, individuals' consumption and labour-supply decisions, and the analysis of how price and quantity are set under different market structures and how these market structures influence the economic efficiency of market outcomes. Implications for the behaviour and organization of firms will be highlighted throughout.

Topics addressed should include:

1. Introduction to the market and the concept of economic rationality
2. Consumer Theory

- The budget

- Preferences and Utility

- Choice

- Labour supply

- Market demand

- Market equilibrium and the implications of taxes on consumption
4. Producer Theory

- Technology

- Profit maximisation

- Cost minimisation

- Firm supply in a competitive market

- Industry supply in a competitive market

- The implications for supply of non-competitive market structures: Monopoly and Oligopoly
5. The concepts of Externalities and Public Goods may also be introduced.  
Readings/Bibliography

The text book for the course will be:

Varian, Hal R., Intermediate Microeconomics: A Modern Approach, (9th international student edition), published by WW Norton & Co, (ISBN: 978-0-393-92077-2).

It is strongly recommended that students have access to a copy of the textbook.

There is also an accompanying exercise book which students may find useful (though it is not required reading). This exercise book is:

Traditional front teaching.

Final written exam of about one and a half or two hours.

Mid term exam(s)/tests FOR CURRENT (1st year) STUDENTS ONLY (students from earlier years must take the full exams).

For students taking the mid-term exams, the final mark for the course will be an average of the marks in the two "partial" exams. Only students with a sufficiently high mark in the first mid-term exam will be admitted to the second partial: other candidates must proceed to the full exams.

The content and structure of exam questions is intended to assess familiarity with the material covered in the course lectures, and, in particular, to assess understanding of the theoretical content of the course. The nature of exam questions will closely follow examples covered as exercises during the course, and discussed in lectures/tutorials.

After the exam students will be entitled to see their script by attending the lecturer’s office hour.

Any marks in excess of the minimum pass grade (18 out of 30) will be automatically registered (“verbalizzato”) by the course lecturer after a specified amount of time (which will be communicated to those who attend the exam) has elapsed.
Office hours

See the website of Wakefield Matthew John

Students will engage with the fundamental issues of Private Law, with particular focus on legal obligations and contracts, in order to better understand the means through rights over goods (owned by third parties) are acquired, as well as the rendering of services by third parties. Particular attention will be paid to property law, legal obligations, contracts and tort law.

The main purpose of the course is to provide students with a thorough knowledge of the core concepts of Private Law, not only from a national perspective but also from the perspective of the harmonization of European Union Law. The aim of the course is to train students to gradually develop a systematic knowledge of Private Law terminology and logic, in order for them to handle Private Law issues and cases efficiently.

Course Contents:

• 
  Key features of European Union private law
  
• 
  The historical evolution of European private law
  
• 
  European Private Law and the comparative method
  
• 
  The role of the conflict of laws in European private law
  
• 
  Competence and European private law
  
• 
  Language and terminology
  
• 
  European private law by directives: approach and challenges
  
• 
  The European Court of Justice as a motor of private law
  
• 
  European contract law: the Common Frame of Reference and beyond ;
  
• 
  The way forward in European consumer contract law: optional instrument instead of further deconstruction of national private laws
  
• 
  Commercial contracts and European private law
  
• 
  European tort law: features of a diverse landscape
  
• 
  European Union property law;
  
• 
  Information obligations and withdrawal rights
  
• 
  Unfair contract terms
  
• 
  Unfair commercial practices and European private law
  
• 
  Consumer sales and associated guarantees
  
• 
  Product liability
  
• 
  Commercial agency in European Union private law
  
• 
  EU competition law and European private law
  
• 
  Non-discrimination and European private law
  
• 
  Financial services in European Union private law
  

CHRISTIAN TWIGG-FLESNER, The Cambridge Companion to European Union Private Law, Cambridge, 2010.

Students' learning will be encouraged by continual references to case law

Students who satisfy the attendance requirements will be allowed to take exams in all sessions.

In order to facilitate learning, some of the topics covered in class will be supported by power point presentations. Other supporting materials (legal cases, documents, legal texts) will be available to students on the teacher’s website.

See the website of Enrico Al Mureden

The aim of the course is to provide students with the fundamentals of public law

• 
  Introduction to the course. Law and legal system. Juridical systems. Public law and private Law.
  
• 
  The State. The constitutive elements of the State (people, territory, sovereign power).
  
• 
  The Italian legal system.
  

• 
  The international legal order.
  

• 
  European Union law. Profiles of European Constitutional Law. Freedom of the Treaty (TEU – TFEU); and the protection of competition (outline).
  

• 
  Forms of State and forms of government. Classification of forms of State based on relations sovereignty-people (Absolute State, Liberal State, Socialist State and Constitutional State) and sovereignty-territory (Unitary State, Regional State, Federal State).
  
• 
  Classification of forms of government (Constitutional monarchy, Presidential system, Parliamentary system, Semi-presidential system). In particular: the parliamentary form of government in Italy.
  

• 
  The sources of law. Source, disposition, rule.
  

• 
  The Constitution. The sources of economy law. The individuals and legal situations subjective. The inviolable rights of the person and the fulfillment of the fundamental duties of political, economic and social solidarity. The principle of equality. The freedoms: positive and negative freedom (outline). Civil relations: rights and duties. Ethical and social relations and social groups. Economic relations. Political relations.
  

• 
  The juridical situations: rights and legitimate interests.
  

• 
  The constitutional amendment and constitutional laws. Amending article 81 Const. (public budgets).
  

• 
  The process of constitutional revision and for constitutional law. Limits to the constitutional amendment. The constitutional revision in practice.
  

• 
  The Community sources. The TEU/TFEU. Legislation. Directives and Regulations. Non-legislative acts. The supremacy of Community law over national law. The distribution of competences between Community and Member States. The regional law and Community law. Economic principles and the effect on local authority.
  

• 
  The primary sources. Laws of the State. The reserve law.
  

• 
  The legislative process of the formation of law. The preparatory phase (legislative initiative). The deployment phase. The legislative Committees. The additional phase efficacy.
  

• 
  Measure having the force of law. Force of law. The legislative decree. Legislative Decree. Other acts with the force of law and the autonomy sources.
  

• 
  Regional laws. Legislative power of the regions.
  

• 
  Regulations of Chambers; Regulations of other constitutional bodies.
  

• 
  The referendum as a source of law and as an instrument of direct democracy.
  

• 
  Regulations such as secondary sources of law. The discipline of the executive regulations (implementing, for implementation, integration, independent, organization, deregulation - the process of training). Adoption procedure of the executive regulations.
  

• 
  Regulation acts (acts of independent authorities).
  

• 
  The regulations of the regions and local authorities. The power to legislate of Municipalities, Provinces, University and other public entities.  
  

• 
  The custom and the constitutional convention.
  

• 
  Criteria for resolution of the antinomies: criteria of importance, chronological, expertise and specialty. The shortcomings of the legal system: the interpretation and application by analogy. The teleological criteria. European Law and national law: coordination, supremacy, automatic transposing order in the Member State Law.
  

• 
  Electoral system and electoral body. Constitutional principles in terms of voting. Electoral Systems. Institutions of direct democracy.
  

• 
  Parliament. Parliament as a forum of political representation. The bicameral. The joint sitting of Parliament. The internal organization of Parliament. Autonomy of Houses. The role of the parliamentary: representation of the Nation and no binding mandate. Prerogatives of parliamentary. The allowance of the members of Parliament. Decision rules. The parliamentary immunity. The law formally. Budget law and fiscal consolidation. The cognitive activity of each House. The inquiries. Amnesty and pardon laws. The function relating the form of government. The functions of information and control. Law on approval of budgets and accounts. The Court of Auditors' control. The deliberation of the state of war. The ratification of international treaties authorized by law. The functions relating the EU.
  

• 
  The Government. Composition: the Presidency, Council of Ministers, the Ministries.
  

• 
  Auxiliary Bodies: The National Council for Economics and Labour; Council of State; The Court of Auditors. The confidence relationship between Parliament and Government. The formation of the government. The motion of no confidence. The responsibility of the Government. The relationship between Government and other constitutional bodies.
  

• 
  The President of the Italian Republic in the constitutional order. Election of the President. Term of office and termination of the office. Incapacity and substitution. Duties relating to the legislature. Duties relating to the executive. Powers relating to the judiciary. Irresponsibility of the President and ministerial countersignature. Classification of presidential acts.
  

• 
  Jurisdiction. The constitutional principles. The judicial function. The autonomy and the independency of the Judiciary branch. Irrevocability of judges. Responsibility (disciplinary, civil, criminal). Composition of Judicial branch. The High Council of the Judiciary and the Court of Cassation. Administrative jurisdiction. The bodies of administrative jurisdiction. Other jurisdictions (outline).
  

• 
  The constitutional justice and the Italian Constitutional Court. Constitutional control. Composition and functions of Constitutional Court.
  

• 
  Constitutional legitimacy judgment. Conflicts arising from allocation of powers of the State and those powers allocated to State and Regions, and between Regions. Impeachment of the President of the Republic. Judgement of admissibility of abrogative referendum. Types of decisions of the Constitutional Court.
  

• 
  Regions. The Local Governments. Form of government. Legislative, regulatory and statutory power. Administrative autonomy. Revenue and expenditure. Autonomy. Financial autonomy. The local autonomies.
  

• 
  The public administration. Administrative function and administrative activity. The constitutional principles of administrative organization and administrative activity. The respect of European Union law principles. The autonomy, the autarchy and self-defense. Administrative decentralization and the principle of subsidiarity. Administrative organisation. Legal capacity and the bodies. The competence. Organisational relations. Subjectivity public. The bodies and instruments of the function. The administrative pluralism. Legal persons in public law. State administrations. Territorial administrations. The State company, bodies governed by public law, public enterprises. Independent authorities.
  

• 
  The Economic Constitution. Administration and economic relations. Private-sector economic initiative. Private property.
  

• 
  Essential public service, monopoly and operation of services of general economic interest. The competition and market rules. The principle of an open market economy and of free competition. Free movements. Privatization process. 
  

• 
  Administrative instruments. Public goods. Financial instruments. DEF. The law of stability. The budget and the profiles of reform. The financial autonomy of local authorities and the coordination of public finance.
  

• 
  Administrative function. Administrative measures, acts, acts of negotiation, atypical activities. The negotiation activity. Measures and general characteristics. The legal position. The administrative discretion.
  

• 
  The administrative procedure. Constitutional and general principles. The charge of proceedings. Stages of the proceedings. The conference service. The procedural agreements. Participation and right of access. The silence of public administration. The effectiveness and implementation of administrative measures.
  

• 
  The pathology of the proceedings. The vices of administrative acts. The self-defense decision making. The remedies.
  

• 
  The concept of administrative justice. General principles and judicial bodies (ordinary judge and administrative judge). Recourse to ordinary courts against the Public Administration. The administrative court and other specialized courts. The judicial protection against the Public Administration. The protection in administrative matters. Administrative appeals.
  

• 
  The ratio of office and working relationships with civil servants. Rights and duty of the civil servant. The responsibility and judgments of responsibility. Legal status of the responsibility of public administration. Elements of responsibility. Civil, accounting, criminal and disciplinary responsibility.
  

Giuseppe Franco Ferrari, Introduction to Italian public law, Giuffrè, 2008.

Other readings will be recommended during the course.
Teaching methods

Frontal lessons.

Oral exam, whose aim is to verify the knowledge acquired, the understanding of the topics and reasoning abilities of the students. There will be mid-terms (only for attending students) and three total exam possibilities.

To attend the exam, each student must sign up via AlmaEsami within the deadline. Those who cannot sign up must immediately (before the official closing of the subscription lists) inform the Programme Coordinator or Tutor of the problem. Deciding whether or not to allow not enrolled students to attend the exam is up to the teacher. The teacher will register the final mark on the date set and indicated in AlmaEsami.
Teaching tools

Slides.
Office hours

See the website of Daniele Senzani

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At the end of the teaching activities, students will have a comprehensive understanding of the main institutions regulating corporations and firms, focusing on their basic characteristics and tasks. Furthermore, students will be able to acquire and grasp basic notions about all the different types of firms, consortiums and lobbies, in order to assess and verify how these organizations, which are widespread in the Italian Economic scenario, could be profitably used for the practice of the economic activity (principles, structures and organizations).

The International approach to the course sets the platform for a continuous comparative evaluation between Italian commercial law and Industrial legislation, versus the international directives on this very field (with a special focus on EU regulation on the subject). International agreements and basic concepts of commercial and industrial law will be tackled, taking into careful consideration the antitrust legislation, regulation of particularities and all creative activities, regulation of know-how and of technologies, as well as unfair competition and practices like dumping, misleading communication.

1. 
   Introduction: A Brief Account of the History of Italian and European Commercial Law.
   
2. 
   Partnerships under Italian, European and United States laws.
   
3. 
   Private Companies under Italian, European and United States laws with particular regard to formation, organizational changes, capital structure and fund raising, corporate governance.
   
4. 
   Public Companies under Italian, European and United States laws with particular regard to formation, organizational changes, capital structure and fund raising, corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions.
   
5. 
   Securities markets.
   
6. 
   Mutual Companies.
   
7. 
   Group of Companies.
   
8. 
   Agency Problems, Conflict of Interests within Companies and Legal Strategies to address them.
   

• 
  Kraakman, Armour et Al., The Anatomy of Corporate Law, Oxford University Press, 2^nd Edition: Chapers 1 to 8.
  
• 
  Whish and Bailey, Competition Law, 7th edition, Oxford University Press, 2012.
  
• 
  Presentations, readings and other materials as indicated in class at the beginning and during the course.  
  

Written examinations in the form of mid-term exams and full exams.   Mid-term exams contribute to the final grade by a third each to the extent that each of them is taken at the relevant dates and passed with a grade not lower than 18.  Full exams will be based on the whole course program and all the relevant materials (presentations, slides, textbooks and/or additional readings).

  
Office hours: Check the website of Alessandro Pomelli


75662 - DATA PROCESSING FOR ECONOMICS AND FINANCE
30 class hours, 4 credits
Learning outcomes

On completion of the course, students will have learnt how to write a report, as requested to a junior economic and financial analyst, and how to effectively describe it. They will earn essential abilities such as:

1. 
   finding and organizing data, text-based and graphical information which will be used to write the report;
   
2. 
   handle data and information;
   
3. 
   abstract and simplify complex problems;
   
4. 
   apply knowledge and skills to the solution of theoretical and applied problems in economics and finance;
   
5. 
   design a report;
   
6. 
   rhetoric and strategy for writing and presenting a report;
   
7. 
   oral presentation skills.
   

The instructors will be mainly professionals working in the consulting sector, experts in market analysis and reporting. They will explain students how to plan, design and deliver economic and financial reports.

Students will play an active role and will be required to apply their knowledge in economics and finance, together with the specific skills of the current course. After choosing the topic from a list, they will prepare and write their own report and then deliver it in public seminars.
Readings/Bibliography

Class material.

Teaching will combine traditional lecturing by experts in economic and financial reporting, and students’ presentations to the class.

Evaluation of students will be based on their written report (60%) and its oral presentation (40%).

This is a “hands-on” course where students’ involvement is essential.

TBA
Office hours

TBA

75663 - ECONOMICS FOR FINANCIAL INTERMEDIATION
Prof. Giuseppe Torluccio

60 class hours, 8 credits

Learning outcomes

The course aims to provide insights into and understanding of the major theories and practices related to financial intermediation, and the risk management issues currently in use in major banks around the world.

This course addresses the main issues related to financial intermediation and financial risk management, and provides the tools to analyze issues in asset pricing and market finance.

The course ties together the mainstream topics of risk measurement and management with the downstream issues of the risk management process. While traditional risk management focused on a bank’s banking book (i.e. on-balance sheet assets and liabilities), modern risk management is concerned with both the banking book and the trading book, which mainly consists of off-balance sheet financial instruments.
Readings/Bibliography

Saunders, A. and M.M. Cornett Financial Institutions Management: A Risk Management Approach. (New York: McGraw Hill)

- lectures (6 hours per week);

- self-study in computer labs (doing home assignments using Excel);

- self-study with literature.

Two-hour written examination.

Good command of methods of calculus, general probability theory and mathematical statistics are also required for the course.

The student will be able to understand, formalize and evaluate a complex financial transaction, distinguishing its primary components. A critical discussion on the evaluation techniques and the alternative procedures will make students completely awake on their ability in the financial field and represents the final goal of the course.

• 
  Simple and Compound interest and discount
  
• 
  Annuities certain
  
• 
  Sinking funds and amortization
  
• 
  Constitution of a capital
  
• 
  Valuation of bonds in a no-arbitrage setting
  
• 
  Term structure of interest rates
  
• 
  Valuation of index-linked bonds: floater, reverse floater and swap
  
• 
  The concept of risk: basic principles of immunization
  

• 
  Capinski-Zastawniak, Mathematics for Finance, Springer
  
• 
  Janssen-Manca-Volpe, Mathematical Finance, Wiley
  

silvia.romagnoli@unibo.it

At the end of the course, students will have acquired knowledge of the main statistical techniques for exploratory data analysis and for inference of population parameters from random samples. The learnt techniques cover graphical tools, summary measures for single and multiple variables, estimation and hypothesis testing for Gaussian and Binomial populations. Students will also be able to implement the learnt procedures through the statistical software R. Skills to solve elementary probability problems will be developed.

The course program is organized in four parts as described below.

Graphical tools for data presentation. Frequency tables. Frequency distributions. Summary measures of position and dispersion. Two-way tables. Joint, marginal and conditional distributions. Independence. Association and chi-squared index. Linear dependence and correlation.

Approaches to Probability Theory. Axiomatic approach to probability. Sets and Events. Conditional probability. Independent events. Bayes theorem and total probability theorem. Random variables. Mean, quantiles and variance. Discrete and Continuous Uniform distribution. Binomial distribution. Gaussian distribution. Independent variables. Sums of random variables. Central limit theorem and Law of large numbers. Chi-squared and t distributions.

Random sampling. Parametric statistical models. Sampling distributions. Point estimation. Bias and mean squared error. Confidence intervals for the mean of a Gaussian population. Approximate confidence interval for a probability. Confidence interval for the difference between the means of two Gaussian populations. Approximate confidence interval for the difference of two probabilities. Hypothesis testing on the mean of a Gaussian population. P-value. Approximate test on a probability. Test on the difference between the means of two Gaussian populations. Approximate test for the difference of two probabilities. Approximate test of independence on a two-way table.

1. 
   Computer programming
   

Some lectures will be held in the computer laboratory. Students will be introduced to the software R that will be used to apply the statistical techniques that they have learnt to real-life problems.

• 
  Newbold, P., Carlson, W.L. and Thorne, B. (2013), Statistics for Business and Economics, Pearson-Prentice Hall.
  
• 
  Lecture notes.
  

Traditional lectures and computer laboratory sessions.

Written exam

R software

www2.stat.unibo.it/bortot/default.html

This one-semester course covers basic issues in public finance and public policy, stemming from the design of tax and social insurance policies to federalism and the regulation of natural monopolies. The course tries to provide the theoretical foundations of optimal public policy, with emphasis on second-best theories. Empirical evidence in support of the theories will also be presented. Topics include incidence of taxation, income taxation, transfer and welfare programs, public goods and externalities, optimal social insurance, health markets.

1. 
   What justifies public intervention in economics. Welfare economics
   
2. 
   Market failures: public goods and externalities
   
3. 
   The theory of collective choices: political economy and political decision making
   
4. 
   Income redistribution
   
5. 
   The welfare state.
   
6. 
   Social Security
   
7. 
   Health Care
   
8. 
   Expenditure programs for the poor
   
9. 
   Taxation and Income Distribution
   
10. 
    Taxation and Efficiency
    
11. 
    Efficient and Equitable taxation
    
12. 
    Personal income tax and corporation tax
    
13. 
    Federalism and public finance
    
14. 
    Regulation: natural monopolies
    

Rosen and Gayer: Public Finance, 10^th edition (2013). McGraw Hill

Other readings will be indicated in class.
Two elective modules among the following:
Industrial Organization

International Trade

Labor Economics
59160 - INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATION
Prof. Giacomo Calzolari, Prof. Davide Dragone

60 class hours, 8 credits

Learning outcomes

On completion of the course, students will have a basic and broad knowledge of the modern Industrial Organization: about how firms operate in markets, their strategies, different modes of competition and how firms interact with consumers. In particular, students will be able to describe imperfectly competitive markets, understand and evaluate strategies by firms in real-world industries, assess the effects of market structure and firms’ behavior on profitability and welfare, assess the role of public policies, interpret the evolution of real-world industries. Students will also learn the basic tools of strategy and game theory.

The course will be “hands-on” and students will thus learn practical skills, developing oral and written communication skills and how microeconomic analysis can be applied to specific industries. All this will provide solid ground for many career paths such as in economic, financial and strategy consulting and in policy evaluation.
Course contents

The first part of the course will firstly quickly cover some basic tools in microeconomics, then move on illustrating the classic forms of market structure and competition from monopoly to perfect competition, but mainly focusing on imperfect competition. Special attention will be devoted to the analysis of product differentiation and price discrimination and related strategies such as bundling and tying. This first part will also introduce the basic tools of strategy and game theory.

The second part will cover more advanced and applied topics, such as vertical relations, advertising, networks and intermediaries, the role of information in markets and R&D strategies for innovation.

The last part will deal with the issue of collusion, will illustrate the role of competition policy and the activity of antitrust authorities and will cover the area of industrial policy and regulation.

Pepall, Lynne; Richards, Dan; Norman, George Industrial Organization: Theory and Applications, 5^th Edition | 978-1-118-25030-3 ISBN-13: 9781118250303 Wiley. Also available at CourseSmart.

Teaching will combine traditional lecturing, active classroom learning (“flipping the classroom”) and participation to a “role-playing game” (Competitive Strategy Game) requiring students to set-up their own enterprise and operate in virtual markets, earning profits (or making losses!).

Assessment of students will be based on a written closed-book exam (70%), class participation (5%), outcome and presentation for the Competitive Strategy Game (25%).

http://www.unibo.it/docenti/giacomo.calzolari

See the website of Giacomo Calzolari and Davide Dragone

The course consists of four parts. The aim of the first part is to introduce students to the debate on globalization from the viewpoint of international trade in goods and services. The aim of the second and third parts is to give students a better understanding of the causes and consequences of international trade, and of the effects of trade policies respectively. The aim of the fourth part is to equip students with the main approaches to the analysis of international factor movement and multinational operations, and to discuss the role of the World Trade Organization. Upon completing the course, students will have acquired a theoretical framework to understand the complex issues raised by the economic interdependence of nations and to analyze them in a systematic way.

1. 
   Globalization and its discontents
   

1. 
   Key concepts and key facts
   
2. 
   Opposite views
   

2. 
   Cause and Consequences of International Trade
   
   1. 
      North-South Trade: The Comparative Advantage Theory
      

1. 
   The Ricardian Model
   
2. 
   The Specific Factors Model
   
3. 
   The Factor Proportions Model
   

1. 
   North-North Trade: Economies of Scale and Imperfect Competition
   
1. 
   Trade Policy
   

1. 
   The Instruments of Trade Policies
   
2. 
   The Political Economy of Trade Policies
   

4. 
   International Factor Movements, Globalization, and Developing Countries
   

1. 
   Foreign direct investment and migration
   
2. 
   Offshoring, outsourcing, and licensing
   
3. 
   Trade policy in developing countries
   
4. 
   Controversies about the WTO and globalization (intellectual property rights, labor standards, trade and environment)
   

P. Krugman, M. Obstfeld, M. Melitz, "International Trade: Theory and Policy”, 10th Edition, Pearson, 2014.

R. Feenstra, A. Taylor, "International Economics", 3^rd Edition, Macmillan, 2013.
Teaching methods

During the 60 teaching hours, topics will be tackled in the order indicated in the program. After the presentation of the underlying theory behind the topic under study, the political economy applications of each and relevant exercises will be carried out.

Written examination.

alireza.naghavi@unibo.it

gianmarco.ottaviano@unibo.it

39069 - LABOR ECONOMICS
Prof. Giulio Zanella

60 contact hours, 8 credits
Learning outcomes

In this module you will learn how the labor market works, why the government regulates it by setting up specific institutions, and what are the effects of these institutions on workers’ behavior, employers’ behavior, and market equilibrium. The labor market is a very specific market because the services that are exchanged there for pay (labor services) are embodied into people. Think of a non-specific market such as the market of apples: apples of a given variety are equal or almost so, they do not make choices about whether to show up on the market or remain on the tree, they do not complain or decide to taste worse if their price is too low. Not so people. People differ from each other in many relevant respects and respond to incentives. At the end of the course you will be able to understand labor markets from an economic perspective and to participate in a non-ideological way to the public debate about labor issues.

One of the following (to be decided): G. Borjas, Labor Economics; or R. Ehrenberg and R. Smith, Modern Labor Economics: Theory and Public Policy

Classes
Assessment methods

Written exam
Links to further information

http://www2.dse.unibo.it/zanella/teaching.htm

giulio.zanella@unibo.it

                                                          
 Third year


                                                          

75363 - CORPORATE FINANCE
Prof. Stefano Mengoli

60 contact hours, 8 credits

Learning outcomes

This course aims to provide the students with the fundamental concepts, principles and approaches of corporate finance, enabling them in solving related problems. The perspective is the corporate market value maximization. The course focuses on principles that guide corporate managers in taking investing and financing decisions; in addition provides students with the standard quantitative analysis techniques commonly used in portfolio management and asset-allocation. After taking this course, students are expected to be able to fully understand the basic theory and techniques which lead investors and financial managers to take decisions, and ultimately critically analyze these latters in light of shareholders wealth maximization. 

Topics covered in this course include:

- Computing and interpreting financial ratios, analyzing balance sheet in a financial perspective

- Security valuation (bond and stocks)

- Corporate value creation: project evaluation and capital budgeting

- Firm evaluation

- Cost of capital, measuring risk and return

- Determinants of capital structure decision

- Dividend policy and buybacks

- WACC and APV

- Options theory applied to corporate finance.
Readings/Bibliography

Brealey R., Myers S. and F. Allen, Principles of Corporate Finance, 11/e, 2014, McGraw-Hill, ISBN-13: 978-0077151560 (Global Edition - without Connect Plus option). 

Supplementary study material such as papers and exercises will be available from time to time on the instructor website.

Teaching methods

Lectures and class exercises on the different topics covered in the course. Students are strongly advised to (actively) attend all the lectures.

The course grade will be based on a standard written final exam. A Mid-term exam is also planned. Exams will be indicatively made of exercises, and multiple choices. Students may voluntarily take an oral examination in order to improve their grades. 

Slides, exercises and applications.

This course focuses on techniques for estimating regression models, on problems commonly encountered in estimating such models, and on interpreting the estimates from these models. The goal of the course is to teach you the basics of the theory and practice of econometrics and to give you experience in estimating econometric models with actual data.

By the end of this class, students should be able to:

• 
  Critically appraise work in the area of applied economics.
  
• 
  Analyse and make use of empirical data in economics to solve a variety of problems.
  
• 
  Make use of econometric software package GRETL as tools of quantitative and statistical analysis to compute empirical results.
  
• 
  Understand the assumptions behind the models that are used and the limitations of the results obtained.
  
• 
  Develop a good intuitive and theoretical grasp of the dangers, pitfalls and problems encountered in undertaking applied modelling.
  
• 
  Basically, at the end of this class students will know how to do basic empirical research using economic data.
  

• 
  Review of Mathematics and Statistics
  
• 
  Introduction to econometrics
  
• 
  The Simple Regression Model
  
• 
  Multiple Regression Analysis: Estimation and testing
  
• 
  Multiple Regression Analysis: Further Issues
  
• 
  Autocorrelation and Heteroskedasticity
  
• 
  More on Specification and Data Problems
  
• 
  Multiple Regression Analysis with Qualitative Information: Binary Variables
  
• 
  Introduction to Time Series Data: stationarity and ergodicity
  
• 
  Dynamic Models and Multiple Regression Dynamic Specificatrion
  
• 
  Testing for stationarity and cointegration
  
• 
  Model evaluation
  

• 
  J. M. Wooldridge; “Introductory Econometrics: A Modern Approach”; 5^th edition (2013), South-Western.
  
• 
  J. H. Stock and M. W. Watson; “Introduction to Econometrics”; 3rd edition (2010); Addison-Wesley Series
  

• 
  Lectures
  
• 
  Practice sessions in computer lab
  
• 
  Self-study in computer lab (doing home assignments using GRETL, working with economic data, doing research on the web)
  
• 
  Self-study with literature
  

Three exams sessions will be available: the first two at the end of the semester and a retake in September. The exam may be organized in two mid-term exams at the end of each term, or a cumulative final exam. Details will be given during lectures.

The statistical software package GRETL will be used for estimation and testing. Lab sessions will consist of instruction and examples helpful in completing the homework assignments, and other activities.

renzo.orsi@unibo.IT

1. 
   Basic concepts in international finance: the balance of payments
   
2. 
   Basic concepts in international finance: the foreign exchange market
   
3. 
   Spot and forward exchange rates
   
4. 
   Alternative exchange rate regimes and monetary policy
   
5. 
   Exchange rate determination: the purchasing power parity
   
6. 
   Exchange rates, interest rates and the trade balance
   
7. 
   Economic policies and exchange rate regimes
   
8. 
   The debate on fixed vs. flexible exchange-rate regimes
   
9. 
   The European Monetary Union. Monetary policy and the European Central Bank
   
10. 
    Currency crises
    

R. C. Feenstra and A. M. Taylor, International Macroeconomics, MacMillan, third edition.

Lectures
Assessment methods

Mid-terms and final written exams
Office hours See the website of Giorgio Bellettini


75754 - MONETARY AND FINANCIAL ECONOMICS

Prof. Gabriella Chiesa

60 class hours, 8 credits

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, students should have acquired sufficient knowledge to understand the functioning of financial markets, their interactions with the macro-economy and the functioning and role of monetary policy. More specifically: i) the principles that govern risk management and the allocation of risk; ii) asset price formation, and the concepts (models) of market liquidity, liquidity risk and price informativeness; iii) money creation in the modern economy, the functioning of monetary policy, the transmission mechanism of monetary policy and its interactions with the state of financial markets.

The goal of this course is to provide the tools for understanding deeply: 1) the functioning of financial markets; 2) their interactions with macro-economy and the role played by monetary policy. The course analyses the role of financial markets in the inter-temporal allocation of resources, risk allocation, and information aggregation. It provides the tools for risk evaluation, asset portfolios, asset price formation, and the analysis of monetary policy. These concepts will then be used for the analysis of the macro-economy, with particular attention to the key aspects of the financial crisis.

The course is structured in two parts:

Part 1 : Economics of financial markets

• 
  The role of financial markets in the inter-temporal allocation of resources and risk allocation
  
• 
  Risk management:
  

• 
  Decisions under uncertainty
  
• 
  Expected utility : concepts and applications
  
• 
  Certainty equivalent: concept and applications
  

• 
  Portfolio theory
  

• 
  Portfolio feasibility and efficiency
  
• 
  Efficient frontier without a risk free asset, and the two mutual fund theorem
  
• 
  The risk free asset, the tangency portfolio and the efficient frontier
  
• 
  Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) – and the assumptions required
  

• 
  Market equilibrium and asset prices
  
• 
  Empirical evidence on CAPM
  
• 
  Asset market liquidity and asset prices
  

• 
  Funding liquidity and market liquidity
  
• 
  Theory and empirical evidence
  

• 
  Central bank’s balance sheet : static balance sheet and intertemporal balance sheet
  
• 
  Seignorage: modelling seignorage and limits to seignorage (Laffer curve)
  
• 
  Monetary policy at work:
  

• 
  Instruments
  
• 
  Intermediate targets
  
• 
  Ultimate objectives
  

• 
  The transmission mechanism of monetary policy
  

• 
  The role played by financial markets’ liquidity in the transmission mechanism: empirical evidence
  

• 
  Financial markets’ liquidity and monetary policy:
  

• 
  Quantitative easing
  
• 
  Qualitative easing
  
• 
  Empirical evidence: Central banks’ balance sheets pre and post crises
  

• 
  Focus on the Eurosystem