Objectives:
- Describe why we trade and the sources of gains from trade
- Introduce the idea of globalization
- Discuss how trade is measured
- Briefly introduce exchange rates and other topics related to international trade
Reading For This Module:
From “Introducing Economics through a Collection of Free Articles by Economists”:
- Getting the Most Out of Life: The Concept of Opportunity Cost by Russell Roberts
- Treasure Island: The Power of Trade. Part I. The Seemingly Simple Story of Comparative Advantage by Russell Roberts
- Treasure Island: The Power of Trade. Part II. How Trade Transforms Our Standard of Living by Russell Roberts
- Balance of Payments by Herbert Stein
Introduction:
Have you ever wondered why all of your clothes seem to be made outside the U.S.? In this module, international trade is examined, and we discuss why we trade in this seemingly increasingly global world. A variety of related topics are explored.
Dr. Wentland Lecture: International Economics (video)
These videos explore economics topics like globalization, international trade (and how it is measured), trade barriers and exchange rates …..watch for how each of these is related to how goods and services are traded across international boundaries….
Part 1 (video) (13:43)
Part 2 (video) (14:58)
Part 3 (video) (28:10)
International Economics Lecture PowerPoint (.pptx 1MB 29SL)
Globalization and the Pencil (I, Pencil: The Movie) (video) (6:32)
The pencil seems simple, but no one person makes a pencil, MILLIONS of people from all over the world do…but more amazing, no one person controls the process to make it all happen.
MR University Videos :
The Big Ideas of Trade (8:01)
A Deeper Look at Comparative Advantage (7:41)
Examining Arguments Against Trade (13:55)
The Hockey Stick of Human Prosperity (4:54)
This is the first of five videos on trade. You are free to explore the other 4, but they are optional (since we covered many of the ideas from those videos in this module up to this point). You can find them all on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-uRhZ_p-BM4SmRr1p6WZnfym2zP2O0LH
Reflection:
Once we begin to see how trade works, it is easy to see why globalization has been increasing in scope over time AND that we have generally benefited from its expansion.
Practice Quiz