Students

ECON3060 – International Finance

2020 – Session 2, Special circumstance

Notice

As part of Phase 3 of our return to campus plan, most units will now run tutorials, seminars and other small group learning activities on campus for the second half-year, while keeping an online version available for those students unable to return or those who choose to continue their studies online.

To check the availability of face to face activities for your unit, please go to timetable viewer. To check detailed information on unit assessments visit your unit's iLearn space or consult your unit convenor.

General Information

Download as PDF
Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Ha Vu
Contact via ha.vu@mq.edu.au
4 Eastern Road, room 429, ext: 8499
TBA
Xiaoman Selma Huang
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
20cp at 2000 level or above including ECON203 or ECON2003 or ECON204 or ECON2004
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

The aim of this unit is to analyse the structure, functions and operations of the international financial system and to evaluate its impact on the Australian economy. Topics may include: international capital flows and balance of payments; analysis of foreign exchange markets, arbitrage and speculation; discussion of purchasing power parity and real exchange rates; currency and commodity swaps; corporate management of exchange rate risk exposure in spot and forward markets; currency futures and options; Eurodollar markets; models of exchange rate determination; exchange rate forecasting techniques; international trade finance; international taxation; and foreign and direct portfolio investments; and international capital budgeting.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Analyse the structure, functions and operations of the international financial system.
  • ULO2: Research and engage with confidence in international business decisions using the appropriate analytical tools.
  • ULO3: Describe and analyse the risks that businesses and investors may face in the international markets.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Weekly tutorial and discussion 20% No Every week, starting Week 2
Online Test 1 20% No Week 7
Essay 20% No Week 9, 11pm Sunday October 11, 2020
Final online examination 40% No University Examination Period

Weekly tutorial and discussion

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 13 hours
Due: Every week, starting Week 2
Weighting: 20%

 

Every week, students are required to attend a one-hour live tutorial via zoom, and post their response to one of the discussion questions into ilearn.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse the structure, functions and operations of the international financial system.
  • Research and engage with confidence in international business decisions using the appropriate analytical tools.
  • Describe and analyse the risks that businesses and investors may face in the international markets.

Online Test 1

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 5 hours
Due: Week 7
Weighting: 20%

 

A one-hour test will be held in week 7, consisting true/false with explanation, problem solving and short-answer questions.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse the structure, functions and operations of the international financial system.
  • Research and engage with confidence in international business decisions using the appropriate analytical tools.
  • Describe and analyse the risks that businesses and investors may face in the international markets.

Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: Week 9, 11pm Sunday October 11, 2020
Weighting: 20%

 

This assessment involves students undertaking individual research on a topic given and writing a 1400-1600-word essay (excluding tables, diagrams and reference list).

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse the structure, functions and operations of the international financial system.
  • Research and engage with confidence in international business decisions using the appropriate analytical tools.
  • Describe and analyse the risks that businesses and investors may face in the international markets.

Final online examination

Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 27 hours
Due: University Examination Period
Weighting: 40%

 

A two-hour exam will be held during the University Examination period

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Analyse the structure, functions and operations of the international financial system.
  • Research and engage with confidence in international business decisions using the appropriate analytical tools.
  • Describe and analyse the risks that businesses and investors may face in the international markets.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Each week, there will be a pre-recorded lecture posted on the unit iLearn page, along with the lecture slides. Starting in Week 2, we will also discuss questions regarding the lecture topics.

All materials for the unit, such as pre-recording lectures, lecture notes, readings, and discussion questions will be available to students on the unit iLearn site at http://ilearn.mq.edu.au. Students are strongly encouraged to check the unit iLearn page weekly for announcements as well as the unit schedule, additional readings, assessment information, and discussion questions.

Required and Recommended Texts, and other resources

Required text: Jeff Madura, Ariful Hoque, and Chandrasekhar Krishnamurti, International Financial Management, Cengage Learning, either Asia-Pacific edition (2018), or US edition (2020). (Older editions are fine too).

Here is the link to the latest US edition:

https://cengage.com.au/product/division/university/title/international-financial-management/isbn/9780357130544

Recommended texts:

Geert Bekaert and Robert Hodrick, 2012 (2nd edition), International Financial Management, Pearson International. ISBN-13: 978-013-284-298-3

Alan C. Shapiro, 2014 (10th edition), Multinational Financial Management, Wiley. ISBN-13: 978-118-857-238-2

Useful resources for this course:

Banking Weekly Podcasts - Financial Times: podcast.ft.com/banking-weekly

www.bloomberg.com

www.theeconomist.com

www.bis.org

www.wsj.com

IMF Podcasts

Technology Used and Required

It is my expectation that the lectures of Econ360 will be recorded on the University’s i-Lecture facility. This can be found at: http://ilearn.mq.edu.au

The iLearn facility at this same site will also be the main vehicle through which unit communications will be made, and via which students can communicate with each other.

Unit Schedule

Week

Lecture

Assessment tasks

1

Topic 1: Multinational firms, and international flows of funds

 

2

Topic 2: Foreign exchange markets and government intervention

Online Discussion 1

3

Topic 3: International financial markets

Online Discussion 2

4

Topic 4: Currency derivative markets

Online Discussion 3

5

Topic 5: International arbitrage and interest rate parity

Online Discussion 4

6

Topic 6: Relationship between inflation, interest rate, and exchange rate

Online Discussion 5

7

Online Test 1 (20%)

Test (20%)

8

Topic 7: Measurement and management of exchange rate risk

Online Discussion 6

9

Topic 7 (cont)

Assignment (20%): Due 11pm Sunday, October 11

Online Discussion 7

10

Topic 8: Management of long-term assets and liabilities

Online Discussion 8

11

Topic 8 (cont)

Online Discussion 9

12

Topic 8 (cont)

Online Discussion 10

13

Topic 9: Management of short -term assets and liabilities

 

Note: Each Online Discussion is worth 2%, together they are worth 20%.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct​

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to help you improve your marks and take control of your study.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.