34502 - ECONOMICS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

Contenuti

The course is based on ten 3-hours lectures

I.  Introduction  (1 hour)

1.      Objectives , Outline and Organization of the Course. Internet sources

II.  What is the EU? Why is it this Way?  (5 hours)

1.      Uniqueness of the EU: Strength or Weakness?

2.      Main Concepts of Integration (A Look into the Treaties)

3.      Economic Approaches to Integration

4.      Political and Political Economy Approaches

III.  Europe's Place  (6 hours)

1.      Culture, Institutions, and the Ability to Innovate: a Perspective on the World History

2.      Europe since 1945: Reconstruction to Globalization

3.      History will not End: The Great Moderation and the International Fragmentation of Production

4.      Unexpected News:  2008 to 2010

5.      Challenges ahead. What have we Learned from the 3 Crises?

IV.  Integration as a Process  (3 hours)

1.      Objectives

2.      Steps

3.      Outcomes

4.      Open questions for the EU

V.  Policies, Challenges and Debates  (15 hours: ONLY five of the listed topics will be presented)

1.      “Ever closer union”? The attribution of powers

2.      Political Economy of Reforms

3.      The Budget

4.      Gains from Trade: Commercial and External Policies

5.      Internal Market and Competition Policy

6.      CAP

7.      Regional Policies, Cohesion, Social Models and Labor Markets

8.      Growth Policies and  Structural Funds

9.      Two Reasons for a Single Money

10.   An EU's Singularity: Decentralized Fiscal Policy and the Issue of Discipline

11.    Enlargement, Convergence and Euro Adoption

Testi/Bibliografia

Suggested textbook:   Baldwin, Richard and Wyplosz, Charles (2009) The Economics of European Integration. McGraw Hill. 3/e

Lecture notes and an additional list of required readings will be posted at the beginning of the course.

Metodi didattici

Lectures will be supported by PC-based presentations.

Students are advised to download and read these presentations before lectures.

A particular emphasis will be placed on the use of Internet sources to access information and policy debates relevant to the course.

Modalità di verifica e valutazione dell'apprendimento

Students are strongly advised to attend all lectures.

The final mark will be based for 2/3 on a final written exam and for 1/3 on a final essay.

There will be no class presentations by students.

The final exam requires short answers (max.100 words) to eight out of ten open questions.

The final essay is between 2000 and 4000 words long (that is, 3-6 pages font TNR 12 or equivalent, single spaced, plus tables/graphs). The topic must be agreed with the Instructor before the end of the lectures. The essay will require an autonomous search for the relevant documentation, and will have to be submittted in electronic format to the Instructor before the end of May 2011.

Strumenti a supporto della didattica

Required readings will be collected and made available during the first week of classes.

Lectures will be supported by PC-based presentations.

Presentations will be available on the course homepage: http://www2.dse.unibo.it/rovelli/EconEU_lmec

Link ad altre eventuali informazioni

http://www2.dse.unibo.it/rovelli/EconEU_lmec

Orario di ricevimento

Consulta il sito web di Riccardo Rovelli