Paper Assignment – EC 233 - Fairfield University



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Paper Assignment – EC 233

Fall 2020

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Format: You will be conducting original research on a topic of your choice (from the list below). I will consider alternative topics, but they must be cleared with me before you begin writing. Expected length is 8-10 pages, including data and graphs. Papers greater than 12 pages in length are too long.

Requirements: Your paper must include 5 scholarly citations. As this point in your education, the IMF, World Bank and United Nations will provide the most readable cites. You may find the true “refereed” journals difficult to read and interpret. A great way to find your required citations is to use Academic OneFile, available in our library (searches for articles by keyword). Your paper must be empirical, meaning that your topic is addressed through the gathering and analysis of data.

Format: The paper should be divided into the following sections;

-Introduction

-Review of Literature

-Theoretical Model – what is the proposed relationship

-Empirical Model (what you are testing)

-Data

-Results

-Conclusion

Due Date: December 3rd.. Late Papers will be accepted, with a one grade penalty, until the last day of classes. At that point, no further papers may be turned in, and you will receive a zero for that assignment. The 12/3 due date is so I can grade your papers before the deluge of final exams begins. I cannot focus on both at the same time.

Academic Honesty: You are responsible for reading the section on plagiarism and academic honesty in the Course Catalogue. In addition, I will be presenting additional examples of what is and is not permitted during the week that I spend on “How to write a paper”. Attendance at those classes is essential, and you will be held accountable for all that is presented. If you still do not understand plagiarism (in all its forms) or what constitutes academic dishonesty, make an appointment to see me during office hours.

The two most common violations of the rules regarding academic (dis)honesty are:

-Collusion – Working together on a class assignment when independent work is prescribed

-Plagiarism – The borrowing of another person’s ideas or work without properly acknowledging their contributions

List of Potential Topics:

1. Integration of capital markets – Do prices correlate across stock markets in the near-term? Use at least 6 exchanges to compare price movements (quarterly) over a five-year period, using monthly data

2. Empirical tests of Interest Rate Parity – Pick 5 countries with floating exchange rates and test IRP versus the US $. The countries you pick must have forward markets for their currencies, so they have to be “reserve” currencies. You should utilize current data (quarterly, five-year span)

4. Empirical tests of Purchasing Power Parity – Pick 6 nations and apply PPP. At least one of your five choices should be a developing nation. What keeps PPP from “working better”?

5. Dollarization – Economic success of economies under a dollarized regime – Inflation, unemployment and growth. Compare the experiences of Ecuador, Argentina and Zimbabwe and Panama.

6. Recent (post-2000) history of growth of official debt in the developing world – scope, causes, and impacts on economic growth? Pick 6 nations and analyze. Choose at least two that have Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) designation.

7. Analyze the relationship between commodity prices and developing nation debt and growth. Determine if more stable commodity prices could avoid some of the difficulties with debt “crises”. Either use a historical approach (1970s-1980s) or post-2000 data.

9. Examine the 20-year history of the euro since its creation in 1999. Compare its valuation to economic events – 2008/09 crisis, new entrants, etc. and the resulting changes in valuation.

10. The stability and value of the dollar and “regime” choice. Is diversification underway? Analyze the stability and track of the US dollar. Compare to that of the Euro, Japanese Yen and British Pound. Is the composition of bond debt changing?

You may also approach me about an alternative topic, but don’t start before you get my approval! It must be a FINANCE topic, not trade.

Procedures: You must pick TWO topics and rank them 1 and 2. I will assign topics based on these preliminary choices. I have to do things this way, or I will end up with everyone doing the same topic (ouch!).

Sources: Literature – Start with Academic Onefile and search by keyword

Data: International Monetary Fund, International Financial Statistics

IMF, Country Studies (on-line at )

Commodity Research Bureau, CRB Commodity Yearbook

Council of Economic Advisors, Economic Report of the President

European Union, Eurostat

ALL of these are at Fairfield U’s library. Nearly all are online.

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