LFU:online

Increased internationalization of modern economies creates new challenges for public policies. Governments face additional constraints caused by increased mobility of economic agents and economic integration; at the same time, international policy interaction and coordination have gained in importance. The students will learn how to structure international policy issues and to systematically investigate the strategic incentives involved in political decision-making at the international level. They will improve their ability to conduct normative and positive analyses of some key policy problems and to derive recommendations based on state-of-the-art methods in economics.

This course discusses some key issues in international economic policy, focusing on questions related to public spending and revenues. The topics covered in this course include: Theory of tariffs, strategic trade policy, and special interest group politics; International fiscal competition and fiscal federalism; International policy-making and commitment problems; International public goods.

Lecture with interactive elements; student discussions of selective topics and research articles; independent application of state-of-the-art methods in economics to problems of international public economics.

Final exam, problem sets, student presentations.

There is no specific textbook for the course. Most of the course will be based on research articles. Required readings will be announced during the introductory lecture.

As stated in the curriculum. Knowledge of fundamental concepts in game theory (best reply functions, Nash equilibrium, etc.) as well as basic econometric methods is highly recommended.

Provided that the rules and maximum room capacities due to the COVID-19 measures allow physical attendance, some lectures will be held on-site (with physical presence). Please check the OLAT page of the course for the most recent information on the course organization.