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BBA - International Business

International Economics and Trade

Programme Objectives

The programme has the following aims:

  1. To enable the study of organisations, their management and the changing external and international contexts in which they operate.

  2. Equip individuals for and/or development of a career in international business and associated specialized areas in business development, marketing, finance and tourism management at a professional or equivalent level to assume managerial positions in the arena of international business.

  3. Development of the ability to apply knowledge and understanding of international business and management to complex issues, both systematically and creatively, to improve business and management practice.

  4. Enhancement of lifelong learning and personal development so as to be able to work with self-direction and originality and to contribute to business and society at large.

Benefits

On successful completion of the programme, participants will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate understanding of management theories, current issues of management, the development of conceptual frameworks to guide their application within organizations operating in an increasingly global and competitive environment.
  2. Acquire a strong foundation in key functional areas of business management to enable them to succeed as effective managers in an increasingly complex and dynamic environment.
  3. Exhibit a coherent body of knowledge on economic, ethical, environmental, legal, political, sociological and technological factors together with their effects at local, national and international levels upon the strategy, behaviour and management of organisations.
  4. Demonstrate command of a range of competencies relevant to cross-border management, including inter-cultural awareness and understanding.
  5. Acquire and
  6. use a range of concepts, tools and techniques for problem solving and decision-making for analyzing complex and inter-related business scenarios.
  7. Demonstrate and apply critical skills enabling the investigation and evaluation of valid and relevant management issues and practices.

Programme Content

Overview

International economics and trade embraces a wide range of issues covering both international trade in goods and foreign direct investment (FDI). These include questions such as why countries find it desirable to engage in international trade, the factors determining the sectors/industries in which they will specialise, the role of ‘new’ trade theory in explaining the gains from trade, the economics of off-shoring, the desire of some countries to protect certain sectors from international competition, the reasons for countries wanting to form  or  join  regional  trading  arrangements,  the  economics  of  trade  policy. The World Trade Organisation and the determinants of foreign direct investment.

Learning is facilitated via a series of lectures and supplemented with discussions of topics taking place in regular tutorials/ discussion forums. Tutorials/Discussions will involve supplementing the lectures using appropriate articles/case studies or discussions about international economics and trade issues and practices. Students’ learning is underpinned by core textbooks and recommended readings.

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this module, students will be able to:

  • Demonstrate how to apply economics principles to a wide range of issues in international economics and trade
  • Demonstrate knowledge of the current issues in international economics
  • Appreciation of how economists address international economic and trade issues

Syllabus

  • Importance of trade in the world economy
  • The gains from trade
  • What determines specialisation?  
  • Models of comparative advantage
  • Current policy issue: trade, labour markets and wages;
  • Current policy issue: Off-shoring and labour markets
  • ‘New’ trade theory: trade with imperfect competition
  • Trade policy: reasons, extent and effects of trade policy protection;
  • Measurement and instruments of protection;
  • Trade liberalisation and the WTO;
  • New issues in trade policy analysis and strategic trade policy;
  • Trade and the environment
  • Regional trading arrangements
  • Foreign Direct Investment

Resources

  • Course Materials provided by IPE.
  • P R Krugman and M Obstfeld, International Economics: Theory and Policy, 6th edition (2008)
  • James Gerber, International Economics, 5th Edition( 2010) Pearson Education
  • Online resources on OCTAL Portal
  • Online databases from IPE’s E Library