Exchange Rates and International Capital Markets

Dozent:innen: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Philipp Harms; Luca Pennacchio
Kurzname: Exchange Rates
Kurs-Nr.: 03.184.4125
Kurstyp: Vorlesung

Voraussetzungen / Organisatorisches

Audience:

- Wirtschaftswissenschaften Bachelor/Beifach:
Spezialisierungsstudium, Schwerpunkt „International Economics“

- Erasmus-Studierende (B.Sc.)

Prerequisites:

Students should have attended classes in intermediate micro- and macroeconomics. Moreover, a good command of the English language is required for attending this course.

Times and places:
Please note the specific dates in the list in JOGUStINe.

Note that some of the tutorial slots in the first weeks of the semester will be used for lectures. See the last page of the description of the course on https://www.international.economics.uni-mainz.de/teaching/ for a detailed schedule.

Digitale Lehre

We will make lecture and tutorial videos from the summer semester 2020 available to all participants. Note, however, that the contents of the summer semester 2026 will be relevant for the final exam.

 

Empfohlene Literatur

Literature:

Harms, Philipp (2016): International Macroeconomics, 2nd edition, Mohr Siebeck.

Copeland, Laurence (2014): Exchange Rates and International Finance, 6th edition, Prentice Hall.

Krugman, Paul R., Maurice Obstfeld, and Marc J. Melitz (2014): International Economics – Theory and Policy, 10th edition, Pearson.
(Previous editions are also fine for our purposes.)

Obstfeld, Maurice and Kenneth Rogoff (1996): Foundations of International  Macroeconomics, MIT Press.

Schmidt-Grohe, Stephanie, Michael Woodford, and Martin Uribe (2016): International Macroeconomics

Van Marrewijk, Charles (2012): International Economics – Theory, Application and Policy, 2nd edition Oxford University Press.


A detailed list of references will be distributed at the start of the course.

Inhalt

Course description and objectives:

The course starts with a detailed (and facts-oriented) introduction to balance-of-payments accounting. It continues by presenting the basic model of intertemporal trade, which relates movements of the current account to savings and investment decisions. We will then extend the model to analyze the effects of budget deficits and the determinants and consequences of financial market imperfections. The second part of the course starts by introducing various concepts of the exchange rate (bilateral vs. effective, nominal vs. real, spot vs. forward). It then highlights the role of expectations for fluctuations of the nominal exchange rate, presents the concept of purchasing power parity and analyzes fundamental determinants of the real exchange rate. The last part of the course considers the effects of real and monetary shocks in open economies, the scope for economic policy, and the role of the exchange rate regime.

Having attended this course, students...

- will know the fundamental sources of exchange rate fluctuations as well as the key determinants of international investments;
- will be familiar with the analytical tools used to explain movements in exchange rates and international capital flows;
- will be able to assess the benefits and risks associated with international trade and investments;
- will understand the effects of fiscal and monetary policy in open economies.

Zusätzliche Informationen

All teaching materials will be available on the JGU-LMS platform (https://lms.uni-mainz.de). Students registered for the course in JoGuStINe will automatically have access to the relevant directory in the LMS.

Termine

Datum (Wochentag) Zeit Ort
13.04.2026 (Montag) 12:15 - 13:45 00 135 RW 2
1226 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft I
20.04.2026 (Montag) 12:15 - 13:45 00 135 RW 2
1226 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft I
22.04.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
29.04.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
06.05.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
13.05.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
20.05.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
27.05.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
03.06.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
10.06.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
17.06.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
24.06.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II
01.07.2026 (Mittwoch) 12:15 - 13:45 00 211 HS I
1121 - Haus Recht und Wirtschaft II