Economics

This course develops the basic concepts and tools applicable to corporate financial decisions. It studies the three main tasks of financial managers: project evaluation, financing decisions, and working capital management. Specific topics include present value calculation, valuation of stocks and bonds, investment criteria and capital budgeting, risk and return, cost of capital, capital structure, dividend policy, short term financial planning, and credit and inventory management. Prerequisite: an introductory accounting course. Text: Ross et al., CORPORATE FINANCE FUNDAMENTALS. Assessment: four assignments (16%), 16-page group project (14%), midterm exam (30%), final exam (40%).

This course provides an introduction to financial economics. The course starts with a brief discussion of the functions of financial systems and a description of existing financial assets, financial intermediaries, and markets. The first part of the course deals with the time value of money and its applications, notably the pricing of risk-free bonds and the capital budgeting decisions by firms. The second part then introduces the notions of risky assets, risky returns, and risk aversion, and highlights the benefits of diversification. It presents the foundations of portfolio theory, explains the standard models of equity risk premia, and highlights some of their important applications. The last part discusses the efficient market hypothesis and the contending theories of behavioral finance.

This course covers the basics of corporate finance, principals of accounting, and financial statements, emphasizing their role and application to corporate finance and corporate decision making. The course starts by presenting key concepts like time value of money, the value of a bond and a stock, financial risk, CAPM, and accounting. The course provides exercises and tutorials to practice these newly introduced topics. It also stresses the importance of Excel to make the course more hands-on.

This course focuses on how various pressures and policies have shaped the development of the Irish economy over time. This is achieved by connecting the forces at work that influence the Irish economy, from local to global, and the options available to policymakers to the outcomes of interest. Policy options include fiscal, monetary/macro-prudential, and trade-related policies, while the “success metrics” of relevance to Irish policymakers include income, population, employment, inequality, and prices.

This course covers the core of modern macroeconomics and is the intermediate level of macroeconomics. In this lecture, we introduce the dynamic macroeconomic theory and its applications to economic policy. Students are familiar with following concepts: measurement of macroeconomic variables, growth theory, monetary economics, international macroeconomics, the role of the financial system in the macroeconomy, consumption theory, and investment theory. Upon successful completion, students are expected to: (1) understand the concepts and terminologies that macroeconomists typically use; (2) understand the theoretical models that are useful to analyze macroeconomic issues; (3) explain and evaluate empirical implications and policy matters.

This course is part of the Laurea Magistrale program. The course is intended for advanced level students only. Enrollment is by consent of the instructor. The course focuses on the debate regarding pension’s policy and how it affects individuals, a debate which interests policy and academic audiences. The lifecycle model is employed as a key tool for analyzing the issues of interest and for understanding existing analyses. Finally, the course addresses topical policy questions and the recent contributions to academic literature about how individuals are affected by, and respond to, public policy. The course focuses on the role for government intervention in the economy (why should government intervene?), and on some principles that might guide the design of economic policy. The course focuses on public policy regarding pensions / social security, and how this affects the decisions of individuals regarding consumption and savings. Topics include motives for government intervention in the economy, raising government revenue, and pensions and social security.

The Economic and Monetary Union is the latest major step in the integration of the European Community Union. As a result, companies now operate in a European environment and national policymakers are constrained by EC regulations. The course provides an economic analysis of the effects of integration of markets for goods and services, the creation of common policies, harmonization of the regulation of markets, and monetary integration in the Economic and Monetary Union.