Taught In English

There is no language prerequisite for courses at this language level.

DESCRIPTION OF THE COURSE: A wide overview of current issues and situations in the field of Latin American economics.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

o To define the field of world economics and emphasize the differences between regions and among national economies.

o To define and discuss briefly basic terms relevant to world economics.

o To discuss the specific aspects of the Latin American economy globally and by individual countries.

o To emphasize the importance of history in understanding current Latin American economic phenomena.

o To emphasize the importance of the social, cultural, political and legal environments in understanding the current Latin American economic situation.

o To discuss Latin American economic data, historically, globally, by individual countries, etc.

o To analyze the impact of economic integration in Latin America.

EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES:

Reference books, texts, support material, and audio-visual equipment.

METHODOLOGY:

The research process and methodology of this course is based on the following procedures and assignments:

o Reading of texts of social and historical type.

o Discussion of the texts in class.

o Short researches about Latin American current issues.

o Final presentation about a specific theme or topic.

CONTENTS:

I. FRAMEWORK,CONCEPTS,PERSPECTIVES:CONTEXT AND GLOBALIZATION

o Economy

o Economic theory

o Economic policy and practice

o Abundance and scarcity in Latin America

o The economic problem in Latin America

o Economic potential versus economic development

o Brief economic history of Latin America

o How to insert Central America into the global economy

II. ECONOMIC THEORIES ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE, DEVELOPMENT AND INVESTMENT

o The advantage of knowing economic theory

o International trade theory. Mercantilism. Absolute advantage. Comparative advantage. Factor endowment. Introducing money. The product life cycle. Toward a theory of international business: Newer theories.

o Trade restrictions. Governmental influence on trade. The rationale for government intervention. Forms of trade control. New ways of dealing with international relations.

o International investment theories; competitivity and new criteria.

III. THE DYNAMICS OF INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS: RELEVANCE FOR THE LATIN AMERICAN ECONOMY

o The United Nations Organization

o The World Bank. Multilateral Development Banks: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The Inter-American Development Bank. Other regional development banks. The Central American Integration Bank (BCIE) with relation to Costa Rica.

o The World Trade Organization

o OPEC and other product organizations

o The European Union

o Latin American integration groups

o Othe regional groupings of nations

o The IMF

IV. ECONOMIC AND SOCIOECONOMIC FORCES

· Economic Analysis

· GNP/capita, income distribution, private consumption, discretionary income: macro-indicators of the Central American economy, Consejo Monetario Centroamericano

· International economic analysis: Dimensions of the economy

· FTA (TLC) with Canada, Mexico, Chile, USA and Dominican Republic

V. SOCIOCULTURAL FORCES

· What is culture?

· Socio-cultural components: aethetics, attitudes and beliefs, language, religion, material culture, societal organization. (ONG´s)

· Undestanding the Latin American cultures. "Agriculture Life" (IICA)

VII POLITICAL FORCES

· Ideological forces

· Privatization

· Nationalism : Banks and institutions such as Municipalidades, CNFL, ICE, RECOPE, AyA, ministries.

· Government protection

· Government stability

· International organizations as political forces.

· Labor as a political force. Labor unions (sindicatos)

VIII LEGAL FORCES

· National legal forces

· International forces

· International standardizing forces

· Export/Import and other contracts (Industrial Parks, Zonas Francas, CINDE, Procomer)

IX THE LATIN AMERICAN ECONOMY AS A WHOLE

· Dimension of the economy: area, population, resources, GNP, etc.

· Mexico

· Central America (convergence measures in this area)

· The Caribbean countries

· South America

X TRADE POLICY: MECHANICS, PROBLEMS AND ISSUES

· Tariffs and import quotas in Latin America

· The case for import restrictions in Latin America

· Export Policies

· Trade Policy Problems

XI ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND POVERTY

· The roots of world poverty

· Poverty in Latin America

XII LATIN AMERICA´S BIG ECONOMIES

· ECLA reports (informes de CEPAL) covering: Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela and Chile.

XIII ECONOMIC INTEGRATION IN LATIN AMERICA

· The Central American Common Market

· NAFTA

· LAFTA

· CARICOM

· The South American Common Market (MERCOSUR)

· FTAA (ALCA)

XIV COSTA RICA : A CASE STUDY

EVALUATION:

Class participation 15%

First partial exam 20%

Second partial exam 20%

Research paper and presentation 20%

Final exam 25%