ECON100 Introduction to Economics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to offer a broad coverage of essential economic principles for understanding the economic operation in the real world. It also equips students with the ability to apply the economic perspective to analyze and critically evaluate economic issues and policies.
ECON101 Principles of Economics I
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to offer basic knowledge of microeconomic theories for understanding economic operations in the real world. It also equips students with the ability to apply various microeconomic theories to analyze and critically evaluate economic issues and policies.
ECON102 Principles of Economics II
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to offer basic knowledge of macroeconomic theories for understanding the economic operation in the real world. It also equips students with ability to apply various macroeconomic theories to analyze and critically evaluate economic performance, issues and policies.
ECON103 Basic Microeconomics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to offer basic knowledge of microeconomic theories for understanding the economic operation in the real world. It also equips students with the ability to apply various microeconomic theories to analyze and critically evaluate economic issues and policies.
ECON104 Basic Macroeconomics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to offer basic knowledge of macroeconomic theories for understanding the economic operation in the real world. It also equips students with the ability to apply various macroeconomic theories to analyze and critically evaluate economic performance, issues and policies.
ECON105 Quantitative Methods for Economics and Finance
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to equip students with essential mathematical and statistical skills for practical applications. Students will master linear and non-linear equations, financial mathematics, differentiation, integration, matrix algebra, and various statistical concepts. They will learn to analyze data, understand key probability distributions, perform basic hypothesis testing, and conduct analysis of variance, preparing them for quantitative analysis in economic and financial topics.
ECON203 Intermediate Microeconomics
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to offer an in-depth treatment of microeconomic theory in order to explore the relationship between economics analysis and human behaviours. It also equips students with the ability to apply concepts to analyse and resolve real-world economic issues.
ECON204 Intermediate Macroeconomics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to use economics models to develop students’ understanding of the nature of macroeconomics and the role of fiscal and monetary policy in the economy at the intermediate level. It also equips students with the ability to apply concepts to analyse and resolve real-world economic issues.
ECON213 Introductory Econometrics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to introduce the fundamental tools in econometrics and develop students’ ability to apply the theoretical concepts and techniques learned in lectures to the analysis of economic phenomena.
ECON233 The Economy of Hong Kong
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to equip students with the knowledge of the historical development and the current situation of Hong Kong’s economy. It reviews the economic transformations of Hong Kong from an entrepôt into an international financial and trade center, as well as examines the evolving roles of the governments, economic changes and opportunities after the resumption of the Chinese sovereignty and Hong Kong’s integration with the Greater China Region. Moreover, the students can apply basic economic principles to analyze Hong Kong’s socio-economic issues through the course training.
ECON244 Managerial Economics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to use economic models to develop students’ understanding of the nature of managerial economics, the role of markets and business in the economy. It also showcases the application of managerial economics in different sectors including real estate market, lays the solid ground for students who wish to obtain RICS associate membership in the future.
ECON303 History of Economic Thought
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to offer an in-depth treatment of the evolution of economic thinking. The emphasis is placed upon how the theory and methods of the past have influenced contemporary economics. The major tenets of various schools of economic thought will be explored. Students will be trained to evaluate the contributions of economic thinkers and apply the arguments from major schools of thought to current economic issues.
ECON314 Economic Forecasting
1 Term; 3 Credits
This is an application-oriented course which aims to provide students a rigorous training in the forecasting of macroeconomic variables. In addition to standard models of trend, seasonality, and cycles, the focus of this course is to build a stochastic model for linear univariate time series. By the end of the course, students are expected to apply a variety of methods in forecasting economic performance.
ECON315 Economic Modeling
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to provide students with moderately complex econometric models to understand contemporary issues in economics and finance and facilitate students to understand how the empirical techniques can be applied on real data, and provide the necessary background to evaluate empirical findings reported in economic literature.
ECON320 International Trade
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to provide students an economic framework and some conventional models to analyze current international trade issues and equip students with the knowledge to understand the principles and concepts of international trade.
ECON323 The Economy of Contemporary China
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to equip students with a basic understanding of the economic development of the PRC, and to develop students’ ability to analyze contemporary economic issues of China.
ECON334 International Economics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to use models to develop students’ understanding of the nature of international economics and the role of fiscal and monetary policy in the international economy.
ECON336 Urban and Real Estate Economics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course is designed for students to develop a framework for examining the spatial distribution of economic activity in urban areas and property markets. Major topics include location decisions and patterns in urban areas, land-use patterns, property markets, and housing policies. This course also emphasises real-world examples, which illustrate the applications of theoretical knowledge at the implementation stage.
ECON346 Issues in Development Economics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course reviews economic and social issues in the world development. Models of economic growth and structural transformation are introduced. The role of the market versus the state is examined in the context of economic reform and liberalization. The impact of globalization on developing and emerging economies is critically analyzed. The course also covers issues such as entrepreneurship, culture, path dependence, income inequality and policies towards a happier society. After completing this course, students should have acquired basic understanding of the problems and issues confronting developed and developing countries.
ECON350 Research Methodology
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course provides a comprehensive introduction to quantitative and qualitative research methods, design and methodologies. By examining the strengths and weaknesses of various types of research methods, this course develops students’ understanding of the processes and the lines of reasoning in implementing an appropriate research approach, and their ability to critically assess research proposals and research articles. This course benefits all students who wish to go on to further studies, write a university paper/final year project or work for a think tank/academic research unit. It also lays solid ground for those who wish to obtain relevant professional qualifications in the future, such as chartered surveyors under the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and certified statisticians of the Hong Kong Statistical Society.
ECON413 Mathematical Economics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to provide students exposure to common mathematical analyses of economics. It maintains a balance between economic theories and mathematical vigorous. Students are trained to solve economic problems with mathematics. Major emphasis is placed on conducting comparative static analyses using mathematical techniques.
ECON446 Honours Project
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course enables students to crystallize what they have learnt in the programme. It can be a practical project or conducting a piece of academic research. It aims to assist students to develop a range of generic skills (such as communication, problem-solving, self-management, data management, and analytical skills) as an integral part of the research training.
ECON450 Economics and Ethics
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course introduces students to the relevance and importance of ethics and social responsibility in economics and finance. It aims to increase students’ awareness and understanding of ethical issues in everyday life, and to provide students with useful conceptual tools to guide their analysis and decisions. After completing the course, students are expected to be equipped with basic ethical concepts so that they can identify, think critically about, and resolve ethical issues that are encountered in decision making at the individual, organizational and societal levels.
ECON460 Internship
1 Term; 3 Credits
Internship is an experiential course offered by the Department of Economics and Finance in conjunction with financial institutions, professional bodies, social and commercial enterprises. It emphasizes teaching and learning through hands-on experience of real-world practices in an authentic workplace. It combines engagement in the daily operation of external agency with reflection to connect what students have experienced in the workplace using the concepts and tools of economics and finance. The course aims to maximize learning opportunities for students to:
1. meet with the changing economic and financial development needs from the real-world practice;
2. apply appropriate economic and financial knowledge to handle real-life situations, cases and issues;
3. acquire work ethics, self-initiative, time management, team-work and flexibility to the business and financial organisational culture for successful workplace performance;
4. enhance their work readiness, generic skills and self-efficacy in realising their career goals;
5. develop an increased level of determination and competence for both in the academic discipline and in their chosen career path.
FIN205 Foundations of Finance
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to provide students with the knowledge of investment products, financial analysis, risk management, and portfolio theory. Moreover, practical applications for real-world financing and asset allocation decisions will be covered.
FIN243 Money & Banking
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to use basic economic models to develop students’ understanding of the nature of a money economy, the structure of the banking system, the principles and practice of bank management, and the role of monetary policy in the economy.
FIN245 Introduction to Corporate Finance
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to provide students with the theory and practice of corporate finance that enable students to tackle the concepts and techniques of cash flows valuation, capital budgeting decisions, analysis of risk and return, estimation of cost of capital, capital structure policy and dividend distribution policy.
FIN324 Financial Institutions in Hong Kong and Global Banking
1 Term; 3 Credits
Hong Kong is one of the most important financial centres in the world with the largest number of international banks and financial institutions. This course aims to develop students’ understanding of the theoretical concepts about local financial institutions and the role of global banking in Hong Kong. It also aims to enhance students’ abilities to analyze the interaction between global banking industry and local financial institutions. The challenges and prospects faced by the financial institutions in Hong Kong and global banking will also be discussed.
FIN330 International Finance
1 Term; 3 Credits
Under a highly globalized and integrated world economy, issues related to international financial management have emerged rapidly. The course aims to equip students with several important topics in international finance, including nature of international financial system, key parity relationships, managing foreign exchange risk, international portfolio relationship and digital finance. By the end of the course, students are expected to make optimal corporate financial decisions under a complex financial environment.
FIN347 Introduction to Financial Derivatives
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to provide students with the knowledge and pricing theory of financial derivatives. Practical applications for hedging, arbitrage and speculating strategies using financial derivatives will also be covered. In addition, the course enables students to understand the development of financial derivatives, and ethical standards in the profession of financial derivatives.
FIN349 Wealth Management and Planning
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to provide students with a comprehensive process of wealth planning and management, and equip them with the knowledge and skills that a wealth manager should acquire in assessing clients’ financial needs and goals. Moreover, it helps students to develop asset allocation and portfolio management techniques. Students will also be trained to make all aspects of wealth management and planning decisions from an integrated perspective.
FIN410 Financial Data Analysis
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to provide students with quantitative techniques for extracting information from financial and accounting data. Also, the course will equip students with research methodology to handle data analysis and conduct empirical studies in global financial markets.
FIN423 Financial Risk Analysis & Management
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course provides an overview of the key theoretical concepts and principles underlying financial risk analysis and management, and demonstrates how these concepts and principles can be implemented in practice in a variety of contexts. It also discusses both quantitative and qualitative approaches in evaluating different risks faced by financial institutions. Specific topics include Value at Risk, liquidity coverage ratio, Basel III capital requirements and securitization.
FIN443 Financial Economics
1 Term; 3 Credits
The course aims to offer an in-depth treatment of how economic theory is applied to make investment decisions and corporate financing decisions under uncertain environment. It also discusses the pricing models and portfolio management models for asset valuation and risk management analysis.
FIN445 Regulation and Management of Financial Institutions in Hong Kong
1 Term; 3 Credits
The emergence of new financial products in the market and the recent global financial crisis have increased the importance of the regulation and management of financial institutions. The course aims to highlight the critical contribution that regulations make in maintaining the financial system's stability. It will also study the management of financial institutions from various perspectives.
FIN446 Property Valuation, Funding and Finance
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course is designed to equip students with an in-depth understanding of real estate markets. It discusses the essential techniques of valuing different kinds of properties, including residential building, office, retail and land. It also addresses issues which are related to property funding and investment.
FINT100 Introduction to FinTech
1 Term; 3 Credits
The aim of this course is to provide students with an introduction to the principles of FinTech. Areas such as FinTech evolution, digital transformation trends in financial services and virtual banking will be covered. The course further aims to explore how FinTech services such as digital payments, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, big data and machine learning, are driving the business world. By the end of the course, students will possess a basic understanding of the key programming languages, such as Python and C#, for developing FinTech applications.
FINT200 Fundamentals of FinTech Computing
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to introduce the concepts of computer programming in the context of the FinTech business environment. Students will learn basic programming knowledge and techniques, that facilitate decision making in a business environment, such as data curation methods and data visualisation methods. By the end of the course, students will be able to apply basic principles of programming and analysis skills to solve business problems. This course will mainly focus on the programming language of Python (Python 3) and will be supplemented by basic system analysis and design software (e.g. Visio, Figma, etc.).
FINT300 Big Data Analysis
1 Term; 3 Credits
The aim of the course is to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the information technologies used in extracting, analysing and storing big data. Students will acquire knowledge in different data mining algorithms for handling high-variety data. Through lectures in this course, they will develop senses of how to uphold veracity of data. They will also learn how to store large-volume data for high velocity of data processing. Through tutorials and workshops, they will gain hands-on experience of using various programming languages, including Python and/or R, to extract, analyse and store big data. By the end of the course, students are expected to develop competence of analysing big data to solve problems in business and finance.
FINT301 Cloud and Cyber Security
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to present a comprehensive overview of cybersecurity from both theoretical and practical perspectives. It further aims to provide solutions to meet the security needs of various organizations through risk analysis, incident handling, integrated network responses, compliance initiatives and cybersecurity applications. Upon completion of this course, students are expected to gain competence of developing and executing plans of privacy and security management in the current dynamic business and financial environment.
FINT302 Social Impact of FinTech
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to develop a framework for students to discuss the social impact of FinTech and gain critical understanding of the con economic forces shaping the financial service sector. Major topics include social good for FinTech, financial inclusion, job creation and destruction, promoting innovative incentives, trusted partnerships (data access, privacy and governance), FinTech gender gap and diversity, and Green FinTech. By the end of the course, students will have a thorough understanding about the social changes that are brought by FinTech companies. Students should be able to deal with new challenges and seizing opportunities to capitalize on the changes such as shift the nature of FinTech to shape future finance and business.
FINT400 Artificial Intelligence
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the underlying concepts of artificial intelligence. Students will develop a working knowledge of search algorithms, probabilistic representations, learning algorithms and various artificial intelligence applications. The course introduces different intelligence algorithms used in the industry which extend beyond conventional technology’s capabilities. By the end of the course, students will have a thorough understanding of algorithmic decision making, and hands on experience in connecting the algorithms to artificial intelligence applications in computer vision, robotics, and related domains. The course will also prepare students for external qualifications.
FINT401 RegTech and FinTech Regulation
1 Term; 3 Credits
This course aims to develop an understanding of the theoretical and practical aspects concerning the evolution of FinTech and RegTech. Students will learn how to analyse and evaluate supervisory and regulatory approaches to FinTech. By the end of this course, students will be able to make recommendations to executives within the business environment, explain how to respond to the changing regulatory environment.
ECON601 Advanced Economic Theories
1 Term; 3 Credits
1. Offer an in-depth mathematical treatment of advanced microeconomics. It equips students with rigorous analytical techniques to resolve complex economic and financial issues in the real world. The students are also provided with solid foundations for research work on microeconomic theories.
2. Explore macroeconomic models at the graduate level. Students will be equipped with sophisticated skills and knowledge to explain and forecast the macroeconomic and financial variables.
3. Provide students with a critical understanding of advanced financial theories for asset valuation, portfolio management and risk management analysis.
4. Offer a sound knowledge of a specialty area in economics or finance chosen by the student to pursue students’ study programs. The students are equipped with rigorous analytical theories or models in their chosen specialty areas for research in economics and finance.
ECON602 Advanced Quantitative Methods in Economics
1 Term; 3 Credits
The aim of this course is to equip graduate students with advanced knowledge in quantitative methods in economics. Upon successful completion of this course, students should be able to apply advanced econometric techniques to interpret economic and social phenomena, design and formulate sophisticated economic models based on complex data, comprehend and critically evaluate empirical studies in economic research.