PA 854: Macroeconomic Policy and International Financial Regulation

This site provides resources for students in PA 854 at the University of Wisconsin, Madison for Fall 2014 Semester

Note: Contribution to 2015 world growth in billions USD. Source: IMF via Torsten Slok/DeutscheBank.

Instructor
Professor Menzie Chinn
Office Hours: TR 1-2
7418 Social Sciences
Tel: (608) 262-7397
email: mchinn@lafollette.wisc.edu
Home Page

Course Syllabus

The textbook is Caves, Frankel and Jones, World Trade and Payments 10th Edition, available at the University Bookstore. An alternative set of readings is from a set of notes (online at Learn@UW). Additional assigned readings will be available on the Web (via links on this website).

Important Dates

• Midterm 1: 10/16
• Midterm 2: 11/20
• Term paper due: 12/12 12/15 5PM

Course Materials and Sources of Economic Information

Downloadable Course Materials

• Lecture 1, 9/4
• Notes on Devaluation and the Elasticities Approach
• Problem Set 1
• Problem Set 1 Answer Key
• Spring 2013 Midterm 1
• Problem Set 2
• Problem Set 2 Answer Key
• Midterm 1 Answer Key
• Midterm 1 Statistics and Grade Curve
• Spring 2013 Midterm 2 (corrected typo in Problem 2.1, highlighted yellow)
• Paper Assignment
• Problem Set 3 (due 12/4)
• Handout on the Taylor Rule
• Problem Set 3 Answer Key (due 12/4)
• Problem Set 4 (due 12/11)
• Midterm 2 Answer Key
• Midterm 2 Statistics and Grade Curve
• Lecture 14, 12/11
• Problem Set 4 Answer Key (due 12/11)

Required Readings

• [WEO] IMF, World Economic Outlook update (July 2014).
• [BIS] Triennial Central Bank Survey - Foreign exchange turnover in April 2013: preliminary global results (Basel: BIS, December).
• [OECD] K. Herve, 2010, �The OECD's New Global Model,� Economics Department Working Paper No. 368 (Paris: OECD, December).
• [CCLM] Notes on CC-LM
• [PP] M. Pakko and P. Pollard, 2003, �Burgernomics: a big Mac guide to purchasing power parity,� Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Review 85(6): 9-28.
• [Br] M. Brunnermeier, �Deciphering the Liquicity and Credit Crunch of 2007-08,� Journal of Economic Perspectives (2009).
• [Hu] M. Hutchison, 2003, �Is official foreign exchange intervention effective,� FRBSF Economic Letter 2003-20 (July 18).
• [Fr] J. Frankel, 2003, �Experience of and lessons from exchange rate regimes in emerging economies,� mimeo (Cambridge: Harvard University, September).

Additional Optional Readings/Links

• Emerging Market Volatility: Lessons from the Taper Tantrum," Staff Discussion Note 14/09 (September 2014).
• "Long horizon uncovered interest parity re-assessed," mimeo (October 4, 2013) (with Saad Quayyum).
• J. Shambaugh, "The Euro's Three Crises," BPEA (2012:1)
• A. Lowrey, "A Study That Set the Tone for Austerity Is Challenged," NYT 16 April 2013.
• IMF conference, "Rethinking Macro Policy II: First Steps and Early Lessons"
• J. Frankel, "The Dazzling Dollar," BPEA 1985(1).
• Ghosh, Ostry and Tsangarides, "Shifting motives: Explaining the build-up in official reserves in emerging markets since the 1980s," VoxEU, 6 Feb 2012

News Sources

• Financial Times online
• New York Times online
• Washington Post online
• Wall Street Journal online
• BBC news online
• Reuters online
• Bloomberg online
• The Economist

Other

• Resources on the RMB
• PA974-001 (Fall 2012): Monetary Policy and Financial Policy in the Wake of the Great Crisis
• Menzie Chinn and Jeffry Frieden, The Lost Decades: The Making of America�s Debt Crisis and the Long Recovery (W.W. Norton)

Weblogs

• Econbrowser (UCSD and UW-Madison) blog
• Real Time Economic Issues Watch from Peterson Institute for International Economics.
• WSJ RealTime Economics
• SF Fed "FedViews"
• RGE Monitor
• Global Economy Matters blog
• Greg Mankiw's blog (Harvard)
• Brad DeLong (UC Berkeley) blog
• Morgan Stanley Global Economic Forum Commentary on international macro issues.
• Baseline Scenario Blog
• Council of Economic Advisers Blog [US Government].

Economics and Economic Policy Links

• Resources for Economists Extensive links to data sources, working papers and organizations.
• American Enterprise Institute Right of center think tank.
• Brookings Institution Moderate/left of center think tank.
• Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics
• Institute for International Finance Think tank associated with international banks.
• Economic Policy Institute Left of center labor-oriented think tank.

International Organizations

• International Monetary Fund
• World Bank
• Bank for International Settlements The central banks' central bank.
• Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Developed country research organization.

U.S. Government Agencies

• White House Council of Economic Advisers
• U.S. Department of the Treasury
• Congressional Budget Office Nonpartisan analytical agency of the Congress.
• Federal Reserve Board

Current and Historical Data

• Economist Economic Indicators
• Note: IMF, International Financial Statistics, and World Bank, World Development Indicators, available from DISC.
• St. Louis Fed economic database Thousands of time series on economic activity, in an easily downloadable form.
• Economic Indicators Publication of CEA and Congressional Joint Economic Committee contains recent economic data.
• Bureau of Economic Analysis, Dept. of Commerce Data on GDP and components (the national income and product accounts) as well as other macroeconomic data.
• Bureau of the Census, Dept. of Commerce Data on the characteristics of the US population as well as of US firms.
• Bureau of Labor Statistics, Dept. of Labor Data on wages, prices, productivity, and employment and unemployment rates.
• Energy Information Agency, Dept. of Energy Data on on energy (electricity, gas, petroleum) production, consumption and prices.
• Bank for International settlements Effective Exchange Rate Indices.
• Economic Report of the President, various years. The back portion of this annual publication contains about 70 tables of government economic data.
• NBER Data Specialized economic databases created by economists associated with the National Bureau of Economic Research.
• NBER listing of economic releases Compendium of links to economic releases, and archived releases.
• Pacific Exchange Rate Service.
• Federal Reserve Board data Monetary, financial and output data collected by the Nation's central bank.
• Penn World Tables Annual GDP and other data for over a hundred countries, expressed in dollars, after adjusting for differing price levels.