國際政治經濟學

The political events of 2016 have been characterized as a backlash to globalization. The Economist even wrote an article asserting that, “To be relevant, economists need to take politics into account”(January 12, 2017). The field of international political economy explores the domestic and international political consequences of global economic exchanges and, in turn, how domestic and international politics shape the conditions of trade and finance. In this course, we will cover two broad topics in International Political Economy (IPE): 1) Trade in Products ■ The historical evolution of international trade ■ The economic and political rationale for trade policy (tariffs, quotas, trade agreements, international trade regimes) ■ The distributional effects of trade, both within and between countries: who wins, who loses ■ How political institutions and trade affect each other 2) Trade in factors ■ Labor: International Migration and Remittances ■ Capital: International finance (exchange rates, cross-border investment, central bank policy) We will also utilize the theoretical tools that analyze these topics to understand crises of the international economy (the Great Depression of the interwar years, the financial crisis of 2007-2009, and the ongoing crises of the Euro and of European sovereign debt), as well as the more recent backlash against globalization in the United States and in Europe. As the name implies, IPE combines elements of international economics with an analysis of politics, both international and domestic. Why, in some periods, do most countries practice free trade (the half-century before World War I and the almost quarter-century since the collapse of Communism), but at other times wall off international markets (the 1930s, the Soviet bloc, and many developing countries after World War II)? Why was international migration almost totally unrestricted between 1850 and 1914 but beginning in the 1920s strongly restricted (the U.S. and Europe tightened immigration, the Soviet bloc forbade emigration), and now again a salient issue? How and when do the leading countries of the world agree on a basic framework for international trade and finance (today’s IMF and WTO), and what happens when they fail to agree? What causes the periodic catastrophic financial crises, such as the crash of 1929-31 and the one of 2007-09? As we’ll see, causation runs both ways: the international economy affects, and is affected by, domestic and international politics. In the most extreme example, the collapse of the world economy in the 1930s led to World War II. But we’ll also see that U.S. Populism, European Socialism, and Latin American protectionism (to name only a few) make more sense in the context of the international economic changes of their time. We’ll also see that the international economy and domestic politics are often profoundly affected by technology – by revolutions in transportation and communication, be they railroads, steamships, cargo containers, or the Internet. ■ This course requires some basic knowledge of international economics, which you can get from the Helpman book (see below), the Grieco-Ikenberry book (see below), or another equivalent textbook. I’ll supplement that coverage with material in lecture and class discussion. Another good on-line economics reference is the Core Econ project: http://www.core-econ.org/. The site is organized as an eBook that aims to make cutting-edge research in economics accessible to students and is available for free.

This course requires some basic knowledge of international economics, which you can get from the Helpman book (see below), the Grieco-Ikenberry book (see below), or another equivalent textbook. I’ll supplement that coverage with material in lecture and class discussion. Another good on-line economics reference is the Core Econ project: http://www.core-econ.org/. The site is organized as an eBook that aims to make cutting-edge research in economics accessible to students and is available for free.

Grading in the course will depend on: a mid-term and a final examination; preparation for, and attendance and participation in, lectures; performance on section quizzes (five will be administered, only the four best scores will be counted); and a comprehensive final exam. • Mid-term examination: 20 % • Attendance and participation 15 % • Quizzes (5 during the term) 25 % • Comprehensive final examination 45 %

 Grieco, Joseph M. and G. John Ikenberry, State Power and World Markets: The International Political Economy, W.W. Norton & Company, 2003  Helpman, Elhanan. 2011. Understanding Global Trade. Harvard University Press.  Frieden, Jeffrey. 2017. Global Capitalism: Its Fall and Rise in the Twentieth Century. New York: WW Norton. There will also be readings from leading economic newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, and the Economist, which offer excellent overage of international economic events and their domestic reproductions, as well as several academic papers. We will refer frequently to current news in lectures.

時間

By appointment

聯絡方式

skymyr@gmail.com