EC907-7-SP-CO:
Economics of Financial Markets

The details
2024/25
Economics
Colchester Campus
Spring
Postgraduate: Level 7
Current
Monday 13 January 2025
Friday 21 March 2025
20
23 October 2023

 

Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)

 

(none)

Key module for

MSC LN1412 Financial Economics and Accounting,
MSC L10312 Financial and Business Economics,
MSC L11112 Financial Economics,
MSC L111EB Financial Economics,
MSC L10212 Financial Economics and Econometrics,
MSC N3L112 Financial Technology (Economics),
MECNL131 Financial Economics,
MECNLB31 Financial Economics (Including Placement Year),
MECNLB32 Financial Economics (Including Year Abroad)

Module description

In view of the 2007 financial crisis, the role of financial markets and the usefulness of risk management models have been called into question.


The oversights that led to market and regulatory failures entail the use of reductionist financial models that abstract from institutions, incentives and strategic behaviour of market participants. This course is divided into 4 parts.

Module aims

The aim of this module is:



  • To equip student with theoretical and operational/computational skills to deal with financial market data in a post 2007 financial crisis environment.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:



  1. Understand the significance of the boom bust cycle of markets is emphasized along with the role of financial innovations and regulatory incentives in credit and leverage creation.

  2. Understand portfolio techniques aimed at dealing with regime switches will be taught and a critical perspective on whether derivatives markets exacerbate or reduce financial market volatility.

  3. Learn new modelling tools such as financial network analysis to overcome problems of reductionist models and currently being pioneered at central banks and policy institutions.

  4. Understand new perspectives on financial markets that discourage business as usual thinking that precipitated the crisis.

  5. Have received rigorous training that will help them with jobs in banking, finance and regulatory institutions such as central banks and policy oriented organizations.

Module information

In Part I, we will start with an overview of the 2007 financial crisis and the challenges it poses for financial economics.


Part II of the course reviews the scope of risk and return in and the role of equity/stock markets. The extreme boom bust characteristics of financial markets imply that the textbook models of the last two decades that assume Gaussian properties for asset returns have been found to be wrong. In addition to standard Capital Asset Pricing Model and the Markovitz model of equity portfolio management, the student is introduced to a more realistic regime switching portfolio model better suited to deal with boom bust characteristics of markets.


In Part III, the role of derivatives for risk mitigation in financial markets is studied. The Black-Scholes option pricing model under conditions of Brownian Motion is reviewed. The use of index futures for overcoming market risk is analysed.


Part IV will look at systemic risk from financial activity in global derivatives markets, which are purported to enable risk sharing. Systemic risk is viewed as a negative externality problem for which financial network models have been put forward to provide holistic visualization to avoid fallacy of composition problems that lead to poor financial decisions and regulation.

Learning and teaching methods

This module will be delivered via:

  • One 2-hour lecture per week.
  • One 1-hour class per week .

Bibliography

The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's reading list.

Assessment items, weightings and deadlines

Coursework / exam Description Deadline Coursework weighting
Coursework   Assignment     
Exam  Main exam: In-Person, Open Book, 120 minutes during Summer (Main Period) 
Exam  Reassessment Main exam: In-Person, Open Book, 120 minutes during September (Reassessment Period) 

Exam format definitions

  • Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
  • In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
  • In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
  • In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary, for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.

Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.

Overall assessment

Coursework Exam
50% 50%

Reassessment

Coursework Exam
50% 50%
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Prof Sheri Markose, email: scher@essex.ac.uk.
Lectures & Classes: Prof Sheri Markose
For further information, send an email message to pgteco@essex.ac.uk.

 

Availability
Yes
Yes
No

External examiner

Miss Maria Kyriacou
Resources
Available via Moodle
Of 562 hours, 29 (5.2%) hours available to students:
533 hours not recorded due to service coverage or fault;
0 hours not recorded due to opt-out by lecturer(s).

 

Further information
Economics

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