| CODE | EMA1310 | ||||||||
| TITLE | Foundations and Applications of Economics | ||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 01 - Year 1 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Faculty of Economics, Management and Accountancy | ||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | The study unit aims to cover the following indicative list of topics: - Demand and Supply and Market Equilibrium; - Applications of Price Mechanism; - Consumer Indifference Curve Analysis; - Cost of Production; - Profit-Maximization in a Perfect Competition; - Profit-Maximization for a Monopoly; - Aggregate Economic Activity; - The Consumption Function; - The Role of Government; - The Income Multiplier Process; - Monetary and Fiscal Policy; - Inflation and Unemployment. Study-Unit Aims: - The purpose of this study-unit is to enable students to explain and analyze economic issues relating to price mechanism with regard to households and firms well as comprehend the main macroeconomic issues which affect the economy as a whole and the basic economic tools and theoretical approaches necessary to comprehend the effects of policy measures; - The study unit also aims to familiarize students with the basic microeconomic and macroeconomic tools and theoretical frameworks necessary to apply the theory to real world scenarios. The study-unit is designed so as to satisfy the needs of all students including those with no prior knowledge of economics, but with a knowledge of mathematics equivalent to at least a pass in the SEC Intermediate Level Mathematics. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to comprehend and describe how markets work across various typologies of market structures as well as be in a position to assess how changes to the cost of production change with output. Furthermore students will be in a position to evaluate how profit maximization is attained under different market structures. Students will also develop the tools to describe the process of utility maximization and be able to apply the concepts learned to basic microeconomic scenarios. In relation the the knowledge and understanding gained with respect to macroeconomics issues the students will be able to describe how the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) statistic is constructed as well as evaluate its limitations, distinguish between real and nominal GDP and explain how inflation is measured in the economy. Furthermore they will be able to analyze, through the use of macroeconomic models, how specific fiscal and monetary policies impact various areas of the macro economy. They will be able to apply basic economic tools and theoretical approaches necessary to evaluate the effects of various demand and supply side policy measures. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to evaluate the impact of practical policy measures and issues that affect households and firms via the application of microeconomic theories. Students will also be in position to analyze and comprehend the implications of changes to key macroeconomic variable such as GDP, the inflation rate and the unemployment rate on the various components of the macro-economy. The tools and methods developed throughout the course will allow students to assess key national economic issues generally associated to Western type economies. At the end of the course the student should be better placed to disentangle and make sense of important macroeconomic issues encountered daily in both the local and foreign press Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: - Sloman et al. (2021), Economics, 11th Edition , Pearson Eduction, New York. - Case, Fair and Oster, (2017) , Principles of Economics, 12th Edition, Pearson Eduction, New York. (NB For each of these texts it is always recommended to purchase the most recent edition avaliible) Supplementary Readings: - Briguglio, (2011), Macroeconomics and The Maltese Economy, BDL Publishing, Malta, San Gwann. Additional readings in order to view updated statistics - The Central Bank of Malta Quarterly Review (online) - NSO Press Releases (online) |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Tutorial | ||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Amanda Borg Maria Cini |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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