ECONOMICS OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE

The aim of the course is to present the main approaches to the study of international economics from a historical perspective. Each concept is placed within its reference school of thought. A distinctive feature is the use of mathematical tools to describe the models presented, combining methodological rigour with historical connections.

By the end of the course, the student will have acquired the ability to develop and interpret certain theoretical aspects of international economics — such as trade, financial flows, exchange rate regimes, and economic policies in an open economy — placing them within the relevant school of thought and formalising them through mathematical tools, with methodological rigour and historical awareness.

Knowledge of the basic concepts of international economics and mathematics.

1. Introduction to the themes. The relationship between economic structure and ideas: why every era asks international trade the questions that its productive organisation makes urgent. The conditions — territorial states, integrated markets, statistical measurement — in the absence of which a theory of trade between nations could not form.

2. Mercantilism. The bullionist phase and the mature phase, from the balance of trade to the link between exports, employment and the interest rate. The Humean critique: law of one price and the price-specie-flow mechanism. What in this approach is wrong and what survives in twentieth-century theories of demand.

3. Pre-classical school. The French debate between the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries: effective demand, non-neutrality of money, the circular flow of income in physiocracy, and market integration through merchants’ arbitrage in Cantillon.

4. Classical economics. Trade, market expansion and the division of labour; comparative advantage and the controversy over the Corn Laws; terms of trade and reciprocal demand. The Marxian reading of capitalism as a world system and the debate on unequal exchange.

5. Neoclassical school. From the analysis of growth to that of efficient allocation: the factor-endowments model and its propositions on specialisation, distribution and factor returns. The empirical anomalies — the Leontief paradox and intra-industry trade — and subsequent developments: imperfect competition and increasing returns, firm heterogeneity, gravity models.

6. Keynesian school and its offshoots. The reversal of the causal link between supply and demand: the multiplier with import leakages, the effectiveness of a devaluation (elasticities and Marshall–Lerner), the absorption approach. The neoclassical synthesis with the Mundell–Fleming model. Post-Keynesian offshoots: distribution and mark-up in Kalecki, Godley’s sectoral balances, Harrod’s foreign trade multiplier, and Thirlwall’s balance-of-payments constraint.

The teaching material required to pass the exam consists of the lecture notes made available by the lecturer on the course’s dedicated Moodle page.

At the end of the course, a 45-minute written exam will be held. The questions will cover topics discussed in class and included in the lecturer's notes.

written

The instructor is responsible for ensuring the authenticity and originality of all examinations and coursework. In cases of suspected academic misconduct, an additional on-site assessment may be required during the exams, which may differ from the standard format.

The written exam consists of numerical exercises, similar to those included at the end of the lecture notes. The exam is passed if the student scores at least 18 points. The maximum score is 32 (equivalent to 30 cum laude according to the Italian grading system).

Frontal lectures using the blackboard and slides.

Ca’ Foscari complies with Italian Law (Law 17/1999; Law 170/2010) regarding support and accommodation services available to students with disabilities or specific learning disabilities. If you have motor, visual, or hearing disabilities, or other disabilities (Law 17/1999) or a specific learning disability (Law 170/2010) and require support (in-class assistance, technological aids for exams, individualized exams, accessible materials, note-taking support, specialized tutoring, interpreters, or other services), please contact the Disability and Specific Learning Disabilities Office at disabilita@unive.it .