MPF_AIFI International Finance

Faculty of Economics and Administration
Autumn 2022
Extent and Intensity
2/1/0. 5 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Taught in person.
Teacher(s)
Ing. Michala Moravcová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Oleg Deev, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Ing. Michala Moravcová, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
Ing. Michala Moravcová, Ph.D.
Department of Finance – Faculty of Economics and Administration
Contact Person: Mgr. Jana Nesvadbová
Supplier department: Department of Finance – Faculty of Economics and Administration
Timetable
Tue 14:00–15:50 P104, except Tue 13. 9., except Tue 1. 11.
  • Timetable of Seminar Groups:
MPF_AIFI/01: Tue 16:00–16:50 VT105, except Tue 13. 9., except Tue 1. 11., M. Moravcová
Prerequisites
(! MPF_MEZF International Finance ) && ! NOWANY ( MPF_MEZF International Finance ) || (! MPF_MEFI International Finance )
Macroeconomics, Statistics, Financial management, Financial Markets and investments, Security analysis
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 25 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 6/25, only registered: 1/25
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The main objective of the course is to introduce students to theoretical concepts of international finance with applications in exchange rate forecasting, financial management of multinational corporations and risk analysis of international financial operations. The course is designed to address different practical aspects of international finance, including the organization of foreign exchange markets, investment decisions in the international context, basic tools and concepts of international financial management from the perspective of risks and returns. Understanding the foreign exchange markets and global capital markets (banking, debt and equity) is necessary to carry out a sound and effective management of the multinational firm from a financial point of view. And since multinational corporations face opportunities but also risks, financial management involves the design of risk assessment techniques and appropriate strategies to hedge the company from actual and potential risks through the use of the different types of financial assets (such as derivatives).

Learning outcomes
Student will be able to:
- understand international financial relations and all their aspects,
- understand the exchange rates and the foreign exchange market operations,
− comprehend basic concepts of risk management,
− perform an analysis of property and business risks,
− provide insurance coverage suggestions based on the client’s risk analysis,
− evaluate the risk management process and system in insurance,
− compare the results for different methods of risk identification and analysis utilized by insurance companies,
− propose the ways of insurance risk mitigation/transfer via the financial market.
Syllabus
  • 1. Course introduction and overview. The scope and environment of international finance. Characteristics of main players (multinational corporations and international financial institutions).
  • 2. Foreign exchange markets: organization and participants. Transaction exchange risk: definition, basic calculations and hedging opportunities. Organization of the forward foreign exchange market.
  • 3. The balance of payments: concept and terminology. Balance of payments accounting.
  • 4. Exchange rate systems and associated currency risks. Basic concepts and equations for exchange rate calculations.
  • 5. International parity conditions. Interest rate parity. Purchasing power parity and real exchange rates. Fisher effect. Expectations theory.
  • 6. Speculation and risk in the foreign exchange market. Real exchange risk management: evaluation and treatment techniques. Transaction, economic and translation exposures to exchange rate fluctuations.
  • 7. Exchange rate determination and forecasting. Forecasting techniques: fundamental, technical and statistical analyses.
  • 8. Foreign direct investments. International debt and equity financing. Debt instruments and international bank loans. Cross-listing.
  • 9. International capital budgeting. Investment decisions and valuations of international projects. Cross-border mergers and acquisitions. International corporate governance and control.
  • 10. Country risk analysis. Political and financial risks. Techniques for assessing country risks. Incorporating risk in capital budgeting.
  • 11. Risk management and the foreign currency hedging decisions.
  • 12. International trade financing. Payment and trade finance methods. Agencies facilitating international trade. Working capital management. International cash management and short-term financing. Multinational tax management.
Literature
    required literature
  • BEKAERT, Geert and Robert J. HODRICK. International financial management. Second edition. Harlow: Pearson. 790 stran. ISBN 9781292021393. 2014. info
  • Outline of the lectures are available in the Study Materials.
Teaching methods
The course is taught in lectures only, which include class discussions and require active participation. Seminars are designed to get practical knowledge of international finance.
Assessment methods
For the course's successful completion, students must take a written exam, actively perform in the seminars and lectures, and submit two homeworks: the first homework (till the end of Week 8) will compile a set of problems, which will be discussed at the seminar and the second is currency report (till the end of Week 13). Currency reports mainly analyze and forecast exchange rates and are routinely prepared and distributed by investment banks to clients worldwide. Each student will prepare a 4-pages report on a specific currency. The investment opportunities report usually contains detailed suggestions on portfolio allocation per financial instrument in a specific country alongside possible risk management solutions. The suggestions should be reasonable and justified. Each student will prepare a 4-pages report on a specific country. Students should use qualitative and quantitative methods to support conclusions in report based on the data from the Thomson Reuters Terminal.

Following is the scale that will be used to evaluate your performance in this class:
- two homeworks write-ups (up to 20-grade points for each homework),
- active participation in the class (up to 10-grade points),
- final exam (up to 50-grade points).

The exam will be cumulative on the material from the entire course. Students will not be allowed to take an exam without submitting two homeworks with all the requirements fulfilled. Active participation in class means that student is actively watching, listening, and answering questions as the lecture progresses. A student also tries to solve the suggested example problems as the lecture proceeds and proves that he/she has learned the material by answering the related questions and working on the related problems. Participation quality (thoughtfulness of comments or questions) is valued more than participation quantity (frequency of comments/ questions).
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
Teacher's information
Final grades would be given according to the following grading scale:

A 92 – 100 %, B 84 – 91 %, C 76 – 83 %, D 68 – 75 %, E 60 – 67 %, F méně než 60 %)

Students in this course are expected to adhere to the Masaryk University’s high standards of integrity as spelled out in the Disciplinary Code for Students and Directive N.3/2008. Anyone who cheats on exams, or who submits homework that is not their own, will be subject to the penalties set forth in the Code. Any copying, recording, or leaking tests, use of unauthorized tools, aids, and communication devices, or other disruptions of objectivity of exams will be considered non-compliance with the conditions for course completion as well as a severe violation of the study rules. Consequently, the teacher will finish the exam by awarding a grade "F" in the Information System, and the Dean will initiate disciplinary proceedings that may result in study termination.

The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2015, Autumn 2016, Autumn 2017, Autumn 2018, Autumn 2019, Autumn 2020, Autumn 2021, Autumn 2023, Autumn 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2022, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/econ/autumn2022/MPF_AIFI