This course explores international trade through the lenses of economic theory, empirical analysis, and real-world policy. Key questions include: What determines which goods countries export and import — and with whom? How does trade affect domestic inequality? What role do firms, especially multinational corporations, play in shaping trade patterns? How do governments design trade policies — such as tariffs, industrial subsidies, and controls on technology flows? Finally, we examine how evolving economic and political developments in the U.S. and China are reshaping Canada's trade landscape and challenging the role of the World Trade Organization.

This course offers an introduction to the modeling and empirical analysis of networks in economics, with a focus on topics relevant to the fields of international trade and macroeconomics. Topics covered will include: basics of graph theory; statistical network models; endogenous production network models; networks and aggregate fluctuations; learning and information diffusion in networks.

This course is devoted to a review of introductory mathematical statistics. Parameter estimation and hypothesis testing are discussed from both the Bayesian and classical standpoints. In the second half these techniques are applied to the standard linear regression model. While this course is primarily theoretically oriented, empirical implementation is addressed in computer homework assignments directed toward applied economic problems.

This course develops the conventional econometric tools of the applied economist. Subjects covered include general least squares and its application (e.g., heteroscedasticity, autocorrelation, multivariate regression, mixed estimation), ARCH and GARCH models, asymptotic distribution theory, models where right hand side variables are correlated with residuals (e.g., errors in variables, simultaneity), GMM estimation, simultaneous equation models, basic elements of time series analysis (ARIMA and VAR models, cointegration), duration data and hazard function models and panel data models. Additional topics which may be covered include an introduction to the bootstrap and limited dependent variable models.

This course covers methods and applications in economic theory. The focus is on structural econometric methods that are at the core of Empirical Industrial Organization. It emphasizes the interactions between economic theory and empirical methods rather than focusing just on statistical analysis. The class is divided into two parts. The first part covers estimation of demand functions and static oligopoly models. The second part studies static two-period models using a revealed preference approach, which normally leads to moment inequalities and to partial identification. This class also discusses some of the econometrics problems related to moment inequalities estimators.

This tutorial is designed for MA students who are enrolled in ECO2400H and ECO2401H.

This course provides an introduction to the econometrics used in empirical finance. Topics will include parametric and nonparametric models of volatility, evaluation of asset pricing theories, and models for risk management, and transactions data. The course will emphasize estimation and inference using computer-based applications.

The course will cover various techniques of machine learning that are used in economics. Both theoretical approaches and applications in Python will be presented. We will cover the two main axes of machine learning, namely supervised learning and unsupervised learning. We will see, among other things, natural language processing, classifiers, sentiment analysis, and neural networks, all of which will be supported by an overview of the economic literature using those methods.

This course is the first in a two-part sequence. It offers a comprehensive treatment of the economics of externalities, both theoretically and empirically. In doing so, it provides a natural foundation for the economic analysis of public policy, given that many interesting and challenging economic issues involve externalities.

We characterize externalities from a theoretical perspective, how they can be regulated, then how to measure them, drawing out their practical implications for the organization of economic activity. We will also cover related topics: public goods theory, the theory and empirics of local public goods provision — education especially — and environmental (and other) regulation. The course will emphasize the ways that economic analysis can help address pressing issues of our time, including issues relating to equity.

ECO2600H and ECO2601H constitute the core offering in Public Finance. The theory of public expenditures will be covered in detail during one term and the theory of taxation during the other term, with briefer looks at selected topics (e.g., fiscal policy, theory of public debt, federal finance).

This course will introduce graduate students to issues in Climate Economics. It will start by covering the essentials of climate science, and familiarize students with important facts about our rapidly changing climate. Policies to address global warming.

This is a graduate course about the economics of education policy and is designed to provide students with a broad up-to-date understanding of theory and evidence of approaches to improve academic success and long-run well-being. We will cover both classic and emerging topics, mainly from an empirical microeconomic perspective, although the required theoretical foundations will be covered as well. Students will be introduced to a variety of ideas to help them think critically about education policy. The course covers frontier research from conception through to the labour market, taught mainly through discussion of academic papers. Topics include, but are not limited to, education production functions; class size reforms; incentives for educators; the returns to higher education; teacher quality measurement and policy; and applications of behavioral economics in the field. The course also provides a brief review of basic econometric techniques and allows students the opportunity to replicate earlier work or begin their own.

This course explores a variety of topics in health economics and provides an overview of institutional characteristics of the market for, and public policy towards, health care. Students will apply theoretical and empirical tools to current domestic and international issues in health economics. The course is intended for MA and PhD students.

This course will cover frontier research in political economy. We will also relate research to real-world applications, motivating PhD students to identify exciting and important research questions and motivating MA students to think critically about the interactions between policy, firms, government, non-state actors, and civil society. Examples of topics that we will cover include institutions and democratic transitions, corruption, social and news media, information and political accountability, political agency, culture and development, and voting models.

This course is the first in a two-course sequence in microeconomic development (along with ECO2703H). The focus is on the application of economic theory, and especially econometrics, to a variety of questions important for understanding household and government behaviour in developing countries. A further purpose is to demonstrate how the analytic techniques used in applied microeconomics can be used to inform public policy in these countries. The material covered draws on (calculus-based) microeconomic theory and econometrics; it is suitable for both MA and PhD students. That said, the emphasis of the course is on the interpretation and evaluation of empirical evidence relevant for the conduct of public policy in developing countries.

This course is concerned with the economic analysis of selected topics in economic development, including patterns of growth, issues of poverty and inequality, land reform, tax design and price reform. The focus is on the application of economic theory, especially statistical analysis, to a variety of questions associated with the conduct of economic policy in developing countries.

This course surveys North American economic history from the early 19th century to the present. We will use tools in economics to explore research questions in economic history that are especially informative in analysis of current economic events. Topics will include, but are not limited to, the following: immigration, fertility, financial crises, income inequality over the 20th century, slavery and its aftermath, health and demography; and technological change. Methods discussed will include the following: econometric methods used with historical datasets; assembly of large microdata; matching individuals across administrative datasets; and strategies for archival research.

This course will provide a broad introduction to modern regional and urban economics. In the first part of the course we will attempt to understand how and why cities grow and develop. In the second part, we will explore how cities interact and why they differ in size and perform different activities. The third part of the course will look at regional development and attempt to understand the determinants of regional inequalities.

This course explores how algorithms shape markets from an industrial organization perspective. Through empirical studies and theoretical analysis, students will learn about the basics of algorithms and the associated economic tradeoffs. We explore algorithmic pricing, platform economics, algorithmic regulation, and how algorithms affect the labour market, industrial organization, and the information economy.

This course explores the application of economic tools to environmental challenges, such as climate change, pollution, resource conservation, and biodiversity. It examines the origins and consequences of environmental externalities and evaluates responses by public and private actors. The course draws on theoretical and scientific foundations, as well as recent empirical work. Topics include core concepts such as externalities and public goods; policy instruments such as cap-and-trade markets, taxes, subsidies, and regulation; methods for valuing damages; and behavioural responses by consumers and firms.

We study how climate changes (heat, sea levels, precipitation) affect human activity and welfare (agriculture, housing, infrastructure, health), when meditated by adaptation (migration, asset markets, trade) and other considerations (heterogeneity, space, frictions, expectations, uncertainty), in equilibrium. We introduce frontier structural modeling methods. These provide theoretical insights and, together with data, quantitative welfare and policy analysis. In a final project, students apply appropriate methods to a question of their choice.

This course deals with advanced topics in quantitative macroeconomics.

This course explores topics at the frontier of research in microeconomic theory. Topics may include choice under uncertainty, game theory, information design, learning, matching, mechanism design, and networks.

This course explores topics at the frontier of research in microeconomic theory. Topics may include choice under uncertainty, game theory, information design, learning, matching, mechanism design, and networks.

This course presents standard analytical tools in the theory of contracts, in both moral hazard problems and in screening problems, and provides a range of applications. Topics in moral hazard problems include moral hazard in teams, information acquisition in groups, dynamic principal-agent problems, dynamic team competition, and renegotiation of risk-sharing. Topics in screening problems include nonlinear pricing, sequential screening, resource allocation with multiple agents, strategic information aggregation, renegotiation in dynamic screening.

Behavioural economists study models of human decision making and the interaction among such decision makers in games and markets. As we aspire to construct "realistic" models, many of the models are inspired by Psychological and experimental studies. We will cover the following topics: individual choices under risk and uncertainty; intertemporal choice and self-control; other-regarding preferences; bounded rationality in individual decision-making and games; measuring choice consistency; procedural rationality, usage of non-choice data, replication of experimental findings.

The course develops the theory of international trade with emphasis on the structure of general equilibrium, the foundations of comparative advantage, determinants of the pattern of trade, the gains and losses from trade, trade impacts on the domestic and international distributions of income, commercial policy, and trade in a dynamic world. Throughout, careful attention is given to empirical evidence.

This course covers key topics of current interest (both to researchers and policy/media types). Topics covered include the new theories of 1) firm-level comparative advantage, 2) offshore outsourcing and multinational activities, 3) the two-way interaction between international trade and the development of domestic institutions, and 4) the impact of AI on international trade. These theories and their empirical support will be carefully examined.

This course is intended to provide detailed and thorough examinations of topics related to trade covered only briefly or not at all in ECO3300H and ECO3301H. The material will be updated to be state-of-the-art at the time they are taught. Potential topics include aspects of innovation linked to international trade, global value chains and economic development, import competition/export expansion and labour markets, multinationals, offshoring and labour, the pro- or counter-competitive effects of trade, production networks, and the role of trade in economic history.