International Finance and Banking

Subject Code:

ECO802

In a globalised world, businesses face opportunities and challenges when managing finances across borders.Banks, as intermediaries in the financial system, are crucial agents in international finance. It is therefore crucial that managers can successfully negotiate with and manage relationships with banks and other financial institutions. Furthermore, managers need to be adept at controlling the finances of companies that trade internationally, whether this be small firms, or large scale multinational corporations. Managers in these contexts also require an in-depth understanding of the complex nature of contemporary issues and controversies in international finance and banking and the implications for the business organisations in which they work.

Subject Aim:

The aim of this subject is to offer you a highly developed understanding of the analytical tools required by a financial manager to operate in the international business environment. This includes developing an advanced knowledge of foreign exchange markets and their operation; the relationships between exchange rates, interest rates, and price levels; the financial instruments that enable international corporate activity, including the management of currency risk; and how multinational corporations make financing and investment decisions abroad; banks and trade; offshore financial centres; money laundering across borders; and current issues in global banking and the phenomenon of financialisation.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Analyse the challenges in managing an international business in the context of globalisation
2. Explain the market practices and trading conventions of foreign exchange markets and understand the theories underpinning foreign exchange rate determination.
3. Apply advanced knowledge of financial derivatives to manage foreign currency risk
4. Critically assess the roles and functions of banks in international trade and finance
5. Evaluate foreign direct investment decisions, and the role of offshore financial centres in the global flow of finance and as conduits for investment in foreign markets
6. Apply advanced knowledge of current issues in global banking and financialisation in managing the international finance of a business

Student Assessment:

Please refer to the official Exam Timetable for further information.