AP/POLS 4295 3.00

Polititcal Economy of Global Finance

The course examines the functioning and broader ramifications of global finance. Discussion is organized around several key themes, including: (1) Concepts and building blocks: what are financial markets, who are the players and why are they there? (2) The alchemy of finance: how do financial markets work? (3) The evolution and globalization of financial markets: how have money and credit engulfed the world? (4) The political-economy of finance: how do financial markets, the economy and politics interact at the domestic and international levels? (5) Trends, cycles, manias and crashes: contemporary developments in historical retrospect.