Course: International Food and Agricultural Trade (4902-421)

Persons:

• Dr. Kirsten Boysen-Urban (verantwortlich)

Type of Course:

lecture with exercise

In-Class Hours Per Week:

4

Contents:

Aim of this module is to introduce students into economic theory of international trade. Students will become acquainted with the theoretical concepts and understand why countries trade with each other. They will be able to use this framework for analyzing patterns of trade and addressing policy-oriented questions in the agricultural and food sectors. After successfully attending this module, students are expected to be able to comprehend details of current trade negotiations, including new topics on the trade agenda, and to be familiar with the analytical tools to assess the wider implications of international trade and trade policy reforms for different groups of countries and population segments.

Course outline:
Introduction: World Trade - an Overview
Labor Productivity and Comparative Advantage: The Ricardian Model
Specific Factors and Income Distribution
Resources and Trade: The Heckscher –Ohlin Model
The Standard Trade Model
Economies of Scale and Imperfect Competition
Firms in the global economy
The Instruments of Trade Policy
The Political Economy of Trade Policy
Trade negotiations
Regional Trade Agreements
Trade Policy in Developing Countries
National Income Accounting and the Balance of Payments
Exchange Rates and the Foreign Exchange Market: An Asset Approach
Money, Interest Rates, and Exchange Rates

Group work/ case study
Exercises

Literature:

International Economics:

Krugman, P., Obstfeld, M. and M.J. Melitz (2014), International Economics. Theory and Policy.
10th Edition Pearson Publisher. (or back editions)

Feenstra, R.C. and Taylor, A.M. (2011). International Economics.
Worth Palgrave Macmillian.International Edition.Second Edition. New York.

Mathematical Economics:

Chiang, A.C. and Wainwright, K. (2005), Fundamental Methods of Mathematical Economics,
4th Edition, McGraw-Hill, New York.

Microeconomics:

Snyder, C. and Nicholson, W. (2007), Microeconomic Theory, Basic Principles and Extension.
7th Edition, Cengage Learning.

GTAP:
Brockmeier, M. (2001), A Graphical Exposition of the GTAP Model. GTAP Technical Paper No. 08.
available at https://www.gtap.agecon.purdue.edu/resources/tech_papers.asp

Location:

Hohenheim

Remarks:

Lecture with exercises; Group work (case study, database use, trade policies, specific tasks, preparation of handouts/ presentations, oral presentation of results by students and plenary discussion). Willingness to participate in group work and exercises determine the extent to which students can acquire and deepen knowledge and other skills. Power Point slides and additional course material will be uploaded during the course to ILIAS;

Module:

• 4902-420 International Food and Agricultural Trade (compulsory)

eLearning:

Course in ILIAS