European Macroeconomics

This course will discuss macroeconomic developments in Europe and in the world, with special attention to the Covid shock, the economic recovery from the pandemic recession, high inflation and the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. 

Connaissances et compétences pré-requises ou co-requises

- - - -

The discussions, the mid-term exam and the presentation have to be in English. Students who attend this class HAVE to take the mid-term and make a presentation. Failure to do this, will lead to a corresponding grade reduction.

Grade:
 

1. A mid-term test (take-home exam): 35%. Questions on key issues covered in class.

2. A presentation: 65%. The presentation is to be given at the end of the semester. Time: during class. The presentation should be devoted to a theme of your choice, related to the course topic. The presentation should be based on your own research, on recent academic studies or on recent reports published by international policy institutions (IMF, OECD, European Commission, ECB etc.). On the day of your presentation you are required to send me the slides, and a text (8-10 pages) that summarizes the presentation. The grade will take into account the oral presentation, the slides and the 8-10 page summary. Important: during your presentation you should NOT read from a prepared written text. Instead, speak freely, using your OWN words. [For the 8-10 pages text, please use Time Roman font, 12 point, double line spacing; left and right margins: 2.5 cm; top and bottom margins: 3 cm]

Contribution au profil d'enseignement

Ability to analyze and discuss key developments in the European and global macroeconomy.

Références, bibliographie et lectures recommandées

REFERENCES

Kollmann, Robert, 2021. Effects of Covid-19 on Euro Area GDP and Inflation: Demand vs. Supply Disturbances. International Economics and Economic Policy, 2021, Vol. 18, pp.475-492.

Robert Kollmann, Beatrice Pataracchia, Rafal Raciborski, Marco Ratto, Werner Röger and Lukas Vogel, "Drivers of the post-crisis slump in the Eurozone and the US",         VoxEU, April 27, 2017. http://voxeu.org/article/drivers-post-crisis-slump-eurozone-and-us

Robert Kollmann, Beatrice Pataracchia, Rafal Raciborski, Marco Ratto, Werner Röger and Lukas Vogel, 2016. "The Post-Crisis Slump in the Euro Area and the US", European Economic Review, Vol. 88, pp. 21-41. 

[The preceding papers can be downloaded from my web page www.robertkollmann.com]

International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook, October 2022

During the course, we will watch and discuss video presentations and press conferences by leading macroeconomic policy makers and economic researchers (such as J. Powell, Chairman of the US Federal Reserve; C. Lagarde, ECB President; P-O Gourinchas, IMF Chief economist).

Informations complémentaires

A few common sense suggestions for the presentations (that will also be useful for other courses and for your professional career):

(1) Zero tolerance for plagiarism. For all ideas and results that are not yours, you have to provide precise references. Use your OWN words. When you draw closely on another auhor’s writing, you have to use quotation marks and provide detailed references. For all data and statistics described and discussed in the paper, the data source has to be indicated. I reserve the right to check your paper for plagiarism, using the ULB’s plagiarism-detection software.

(2) Be critical! When you survey academic papers or government/policy studies you should not blindly repeat these studies. It is important that you put the work (that you are using and citing) into perspective. Discuss possible limitations and alternative viewpoints. Present and defend a personal point of view!

(2) Your presentation, slides and paper must be clearly structured and logical. There is no need to use visually appealing slides with multiple colors, beautiful photos, etc.
If you can devote an extra hour for this project, dedicate it to improving the logic and clarity of your presentation. DO NOT dedicate it to "embellishing" your slides. You want to be recognized and valued as critical and autonomous intellectuals and professionals, not as graphic artists.

(3) Start your presentation (the first 2-3 minutes) by giving the ‘big picture’: explain why the topic is important and summarize the most important facts, ideas and results. Then develop the facts and arguments/ideas and results. Keep to the main theme/idea. No digressions!

(4) You need to know how the variables presented in data plots are defined and what the sources of the data are.

(5) Practice your talk before presenting it to the group. Think in advance about possible objections and questions. You should be able to address (critical) questions.

(6) The use of correct and professional English is essential for your academic and professional success. I find these linguistic resources extremely useful: https://www.thefreedictionary.com/  and https://www.deepl.com/translator .

When in doubt about a word, an expression, or a grammatical construction, please use these resources!

Contacts

Prof. Robert Kollmann, robert.kollmann@ulb.be, www.robertkollmann.com

Office: 42.5.115 (ECARES,  5th floor of R42 building)

Campus

Solbosch

Méthode(s) d'évaluation

• Autre

Autre

Construction de la note (en ce compris, la pondération des notes partielles)

Grade:

1. A mid-term test (take-home exam): 35%. Questions on key issues covered in class.

2. A presentation: 65%. The presentation is to be given at the end of the semester. Time: during class. The presentation should be devoted to a theme of your choice, related to the course topic. The presentation should be based on your own research, on recent academic studies or on recent reports published by international policy institutions (IMF, OECD, European Commission, ECB etc.). On the day of your presentation you are required to send me the slides, and a text (8-10 pages) that summarizes the presentation. The grade will take into account the oral presentation, the slides and the 8-10 page summary. Important: during your presentation you should NOT read from a prepared written text. Instead, speak freely, using your OWN words. [For the 8-10 pages text, please use Time Roman font, 12 point, double line spacing; left and right margins: 2.5 cm; top and bottom margins: 3 cm]

Langue(s) d'évaluation

• anglais