The module is intended to complement and extend the material covered in intermediate macroeconomics. There is a particular focus on the data of macroeconomics. We will cover the measurement of output in the national accounts; prices; wages and unemployment; productivity. We will discuss the difficulties in measuring these aspects of the economy; how economic data are used to test alternative macroeconomic theories discussed in intermediate macroeconomics; how economic data support macroeconomic policy making; and how different decisions about measurement can lead to different conclusions about the function of economies or the appropriate path of economic policy. Key ideas in the module will be illustrated with reference to recent events and current policy debates.

This module aims to give students an understanding of the main types of economic data; how those data are collected, constructed and used. Upon successful completion of this module, students will be able to approach macroeconomic data critically, and to evaluate the strength of empirical evidence for macroeconomic theories and macroeconomic policy positions. In completing the coursework test, students will demonstrate their problem-solving, analytical and deductive skills. By solving class exercises in groups at home, students will furthermore have practised their ability to work in a team and their adaptability.

This course examines one of the greatest events in the late 20th century, that is, the economics of the collapse of socialist economies and their transition to market economies. In this course, we will address the following questions: what were the causes of the collapse of Centrally Planned Economies (CPEs)?; what are the economic problems which transitional economies have faced; what can be learned from the different policies followed and degrees of success achieved so far in Central and Eastern Europe and in East Asia on the one hand and by the other so-called BRICs on the other?

Students who successfully complete this course will have achieved an insight into basic features of CPEs and their shortcomings contributing to collapse. In addition, they will have gained empirical knowledge of the issues which transitional economies have encountered. This course is also expected to provide an understanding of how economic theories can be applied to analyse economic issues in transitional economies
This module examines strategic interaction among firms. We focus on understanding how firms make decisions and the implications of those decisions for market outcomes like prices, quantities, the type of products offered, market structure and social welfare.

The module starts with a review of elementary non-cooperative game theory. It then moves on to the analysis of firm behaviour in oligopolistic industries.

Throughout the module the emphasis will be on understanding how the theoretical tools can be used to analyse real world issues. The theory will be confronted against empirical evidence, and its implications for competition policy and business strategy will be discussed.

Upon completion of this module, students will have a good understanding of the main economic forces behind strategic behaviour in oligopolistic markets. Students will also have an appreciation of the role of game theory in understanding price and non-price competition among firms. Finally, students will learn to adapt economic models to particular challenges such as business strategy and competition and industrial policy.


Many environmental issues can be discussed within a framework of economic analysis that has its roots in the study of capital theory, welfare economics, externalities, regulation design and cost-benefit analysis. The course will focus on the economic analysis relevant for the study of environmental policy. It is designed to provide students with a thorough understanding of the strength and weakness of economic analysis as applied in these areas.

At the completion of this course, students should be able to grasp the main tools of economic analysis as applied to the environment and to appreciate the main theoretical issues in this area. Further, students should be able to design suitable policies to achieve desirable environmental outcomes. In completing the assignment for this course, students will demonstrate their problem-solving analytical and deductive skills.

This module is concerned with topics in modern microeconometrics. Its
coverage begins with an examination of the nature of causal and noncausal models, a discussion of the nature of microeconomic data structures, and a review of core econometric methods.
It then proceeds to cover the analysis of limited dependent variable models, including discrete choice models and selection models, and then to examine program evaluation methods, including difference-in-differences estimators, regression discontinuity approach, and instrumental variables
methods.

Feedback for this module will occur through class meetings where we will go over the answers to problem sets and where you will be able to ask questions about your own method of solution; answers that will be posted on the website for the module that will give you written guidance on the appropriate method to approach the problems, assignments, and tests; and office hours where any additional questions can be addressed. You should be sure that you use these methods to understand how to improve your own performance.

This module offers students the opportunity to undertake an extended work-based placement at an employer. During this placement the student will work on a project on an area or issue defined by the employer as a priority for their organisation. The project will give the student the opportunity to utilise and develop the knowledge and skills developed earlier in her/his master's course, applying them in a work-based environment and leading to the production of a substantive project report that will both meet the University's academic requirements for a master's level project and support the placement provider in addressing the area/issue they identified at the start of the project.

In the first half of the course we will analyse the implications of search frictions for the labour market. In particular, we will analyse the existence of unemployment and of wage dispersion across similar workers. We will develop the main tools of the search and matching approach, and we discuss both theoretical and empirical literature. We will look at some or all of the following topics (depending on progress through the term):
- Job Search Theory
- On-the-job Search and Wage Posting
- Sequential Auctions and Individual Bargaining
- Sorting in the Labour Market
- Firm-worker Contracting

In the second half of the course we will study normative and positive aspects of dynamic fiscal policy with a particular focus on government debt. After a short introduction to quantitative macroeconomics using the software Matlab, we look at fiscal policy chosen by governments that (i) face political economy distortions, i.e., cannot commit beyond the current tax, expenditure, and debt policies; (ii) are subject to limited commitment, i.e., may strategically choose not to honour the outstanding debt obligations. Specifically, we will look at some or all of the following topics (depending on the progress through the term):

- Standard solution methods for dynamic economic problems: value function iteration, time iteration, function approximation.
- The political economy of government debt accumulation.
- Sovereign debt and default.

Please refer to the Module Directory for information about Ec992.
This module builds on the notions covered in EC904 Macroeconomics. The course starts with more advanced techniques of dynamic programming. We then cover the theory of Real Business Cycle, with particular emphasis on how to solve these models numerically, using Dynare. We them study the implications of three different types of frictions: nominal rigidities (New-Keynesian model); search and matching frictions ( Diamond-Mortensen-Pissarides model); and financial frictions (financial accelerator model).

The third part of the course focuses on Fiscal policy. We will look at the effects of government spending and taxation. We also examine optimal policy under complete and incomplete markets and the problem of time inconsistency.