MG4L3      Half Unit
Managerial Macroeconomics

This information is for the 2025/26 session.

Course Convenor

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This course explores the dynamic field of macroeconomics to tool up students and business leaders with the skills needed to make informed financial decisions in a global business environment.

The premise of the course is that future managers should be able to read the news and understand how current macroeconomic events (e.g., monetary tightening by the Central Bank) could affect their decision-making. The course will focus on key topics such as balance of payments, inflation, exchange rates, interest rates, and the influence of currency valuations on global trade. This course will equip future managers with the macroeconomic literacy needed to make responsible decisions in an increasingly interconnected and uncertain world. 

Through a blend of theory and real-world examples, students will gain analytical tools to evaluate macroeconomic policies, interpret central bank announcements, and qualitatively predict the impact of global events on macroeconomic variables that affect firms' performance. These real-world case studies will reflect varying economic contexts across the globe. Students will be prepared to understand better the broader economic context, such as monetary policy, fiscal policy, or global economic trends. 

The course will also enable students to engage thoughtfully with public discourse on macroeconomic issues and their implications for society. Managers who understand the macroeconomic environment are more likely to make decisions that align with long-term improvements in well-being for their broader communities, such as adopting policies that support local communities during economic downturns, mitigate economic inequality and promote financial inclusion.

20 hours of lectures and 10 hours of seminars in the Winter Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Winter Term.

In its Ethics Code, LSE upholds a commitment to intellectual freedom. This means we will protect the freedom of expression of our students and staff and the right to engage in healthy debate in the classroom.

Weekly exercises to be worked on in seminars as preparation for final exam. Exercises will be similar in style and difficulty to the ones in the final exam.  

• Moss, David A. A concise guide to macroeconomics: what managers, executives, and students need to know. Harvard Business Press, 2014.
• Michael K. Evans. Macroeconomics for Managers, 2003  Wiley-Blackwell
• P. R. Krugman, M. Obsfeld and M. Melitz, International Economics, (10th edition), Pearson Education (2015).
• C. S. Eun and B. G. Resnick, International Financial Management. McGraw-Hill Education; 8th edition (2018)
• G. Bekaert and R. Hodrick, International Financial Management. Cambridge University Press 3rd edition (2017)
• Maurice Obstfeld and Kenneth Rogoff, Foundations of International Macroeconomics, The MIT Press (1996).

Exam (75%), duration: 120 Minutes in the Spring exam period

Video (15%)

This component of assessment includes an element of group work.

Report (10%)

For detailed assessment information, including all deadlines and timings, please see the relevant course Moodle page. Assessment timings will be available at the start of each term.