Macroeconomics

This course aims to provide the student an overview and some basic concepts on the urban and regional economy and its basic analytic tools. To achieve this objective, the student must acquire certain knowledge, skills and attitudes. The course runs through a set of formal lectures and practical classes. We will study the economics of cities and urban problems by understanding the effects of geographic location on the decisions of individuals and firms. First we will try to answer general and interesting questions such as, Why do cities exist? How do firms decide where to locate? Why do people live in cities? What determines the growth and size of a city? Which policies can modify the shape of a city? Having discussed why we live in cities, we will analyze the economic problems that arise because we are living in cities. We will focus on many specific urban economic problems such as firm location, transportation, housing, education and local government economics.

K1: Understand democratic principles and values, as well as the Sustainable Development Goals, with special emphasis on respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, gender equality, non-discrimination, universal accessibility principles, and the fight against climate change. K4: To understand the functioning of the economy as the efficient allocation of scarce resources, including the importance of equity. K5: Know quantitative and qualitative research techniques, and be able to discern which are the most appropriate to apply in the field of economics. K6: Comprehend the economic and social impact of various public policies on different agents and in diverse socioeconomic contexts. K7: Understand the economic variables that regulate the economy and govern the behaviour of agents. K8: Understanding economic institutions K9: Identify the economic, political, and social framework for the activities of various economic, political, or social agents. K10: Understand the fundamental elements of the economic environment from the perspective of different theories and various economic agents. S1: To plan and organize team work making the right decisions based on available information and gathering data in digital environments. S2: Exploit information by interpreting relevant data, avoiding plagiarism, and adhering to academic and professional conventions within the field of study, with the ability to evaluate the reliability and quality of the information. S3: Apply the knowledge acquired in the degree program to rigorously, accurately, and scientifically identify socioeconomic processes and propose potential solutions. S4: Manage and develop autonomous learning within the field of Economics. S5: Formulate, debate, and defend critical and ethical arguments related to Economics. S6: Identify, collect, interpret and manage relevant information on economic issues, using the appropriate concepts and methodologies of analysis. S7: Design economic and social programs to address the needs of economic agents. S8: Formally representing economic decision-making processes S9: Derive relevant economic information from the data, and be able to process it to answer the questions of interest S10: Prepare advisory reports for economic agents relevant to decision-making. S11: Describe and analyze economic problems within a specific social context. S12: Model and quantitatively interpret specific economic issues C1: Develop interpersonal skills such as initiative, responsibility, conflict resolution, negotiation, etc., which are required in the professional domain. C2: Communicate effectively to different audiences knowledge, methodologies, ideas and solutions in the field of study. C3: Independently develop and defend a problem within the disciplinary scope of the degree, proposing well-founded solutions through the application of the knowledge, skills, tools, and strategies acquired or developed throughout the degree program. C4: Solve economic models of interest from both theoretical and numerical perspectives. C6: Integrate democratic principles and values, as well as the Sustainable Development Goals, into the professional sphere.

Course program Ch 1 Introduction to Urb.&Reg. Econ Part I: Market Forces in the Development of Cities Ch 2 Why Do Cities Exist? Ch 3 Clusters Ch 4 City Size & Urban Growth Part II: Land Rent and Land-Use Patterns Ch 5 Urban Land Rent Ch 6 Land-Use Patterns and Urban Planning Part V: Housing Ch 7 Zoning Ch 8 The Housing Market Ch 9 Subprime Mortgage Crisis Part V: Regional Economy Ch 10 The EU Regional Policy. CASE STUDIES

The teaching methodology will include: - Lectures, which will present the knowledge that students should acquire. To facilitate their development, slide files on the class notes are posted on the course webpage. If you complete those slides taking notes from what is said in class, you should be fine for the tests. All class notes will be matched to chapters of the textbooks listed at the end. - Homework exercises on each chapter will be reviewed in class, grading the students on their answers. Throughout the term, the instructor will provided exercises on each chapter. The exercises will be collected. The material covered in or based on the suggested exercises will likely appear on examinations. Students who do well through the exercises always outperform students who do not. - Discussion of real cases drawn from the recent economic news that the professor provide at the beginning of each topic.