Course Descriptions of International Business / University of International Business and Economics

IB501 International Business Environment [3 credits]: The objective of this graduate course is to provide graduate students with ideas of international business of both theories and practices. The course consists of normal lectures, case studies, class discussions and presentations, and tests or term papers.

IB502 Economic Foundation of Business Studies [3 credits] This course deals with the application of economic reasoning to real world decision-making problems faced by business. It covers the following main topics: demand analysis, demand and economic forecast, export management, production and cost theory and applications, pricing and output decisions under different market structures, game theory and practices, pricing techniques and analysis. A large number of questions and cases studies will be discussed in the class. This course is suitable for students with introductory microeconomic and econometric backgrounds.

IB503 International Business Theory [3 credits] This is the core course in the International Business (IB) Master program, designed to provide graduate students in the field of IB with a critical overview, including both economic and organizational theories of multinational enterprises (MNEs). The overall course objectives are: To provide the students with a broad overview of international business theories: To familiarize the students with the basic concepts, theoretical approaches and some of the most important academic literatures in the field: To enable the students to develop the intellectual background necessary to critically analyze the questions and evaluate opinions in the field.

IB504 Global Strategy Management [3 credits] This course aims to teach the basic concepts, tools and theories underlying global strategic management. The emphasis of this course is on developing a general understanding of global strategy. The course emphasizes application of academic knowledge to real world situations through the use of lecture and case studies. To help students better understand China''s business strategy, guest speakers as well as site trip will be arranged. By the end of the course, students should have a general understanding of global business strategies with insights on how companies compete and cooperate to gain and sustain in a competitive global market.

IB505 Introductory Business Statistics [3 credits] This course focuses on the underlying statistical concepts that are important to students majoring in business and economics. The course takes an applied approach and relates the concepts and applications of statistics to the functional areas of business-accounting, marketing, management, economics and finance. The proper use of statistics to analyze data and interpretation of computer output are also emphasized. Output from Excel, minitab and SPSS appear within the chapter of the text along with appendices.

IB506 International Organization Behavior [2 credits]

IB507 Business Communications [2 credits] This graduate programme aims at enhancing intercultural awareness and communication competence in the business setting to avoid communication breakdowns/failures or conflicts. The programme explores the impact of culture and cultural values on international business communication, with a special focus on the Chinese cultural context in contrast to western cultures.

IB508 Cross-cultural Management [2 credits] The course is about cross-cultural management. It shows how cultural factors influence behavior in the workplace and the boardroom, and examines the skills needed to manage across national borders. Members of different cultures express different values and priorities when they make and implement decisions. These values influence work relationships, whether between superior and subordinate, peers, international joint venture partners, managers in headquarters and subsidiary, and others. The international manager needs to recognize and respond to the opportunities and threats that they present. In all these relationships, three questions arise: When are cultural factors a significant influence? When are other factors of greater influence? How can the importance of these different factors be weighed? The course focuses on these questions with special emphasis against the Chinese cultural background. The course is divided into three parts: International Management and Culture; Culture and Management; and International Strategies. To fit the course into the schedule of the School of International Trade and Economics, UIBE, it consists of fifteen topics: International Management and Culture; Comparing Cultures; Shifts in the Culture; Organization Culture; Culture and Communication; Needs and Incentives; Dispute Resolution and Negotiation; Formal Structures and Informal Systems; Planning Change; Globalization and Localization; Family Companies; Designing and Implementing Strategy; Headquarters and Subsidiary; International Joint Ventures;  and Staffing to Control. Emphasis is laid on a comparison between the Chinese culture and other Western cultures and a discussion about its implication in doing business in and with China. The idea is to help participants have a better understanding of China’s business culture.

IB510 International Trade Practice [3 credits] This course is designed to provide students with the complete concepts about the procedures of the purchase and/or sales of goods internationally. It emphasizes on international trade practice, international trade law and regulations. The students are to be expected to have an overall knowledge of the terms and conditions in a sales contract, understand duties and responsibilities of different parties involved in an international transaction and know how to lodge a claim as well as settle claims. Also, students should familiarize themselves with the procedures for conducting a transaction upon successful completion of this course.

IB511 Import and Export Management [2 credits] Organization of Chinese trading corporations and international trading customs and practices will be discussed. Emphasis is contractual arrangements in international trade including rights and obligations of the parties concerned and execution of contracts.

IB512 Seminar in China's Trade and FDI Policies [2 credits] This seminar reviews China's trade and FDI policy changes in the last two decades. It focuses on China's structural and institutional changes in the context of globalization and market-oriented reform. The objective of this seminar is to help students from different countries and with diverse background to develop a framework of modern economic thinking to assess the policy change in China's trade and FDI and their implications for local and global economies.

IB513 International Finance [2 credits] current account and employment; the dependent economy model; money any payment adjustment; asset market and external adjustment; imperfect asset substitutability; models of exchange rate determination; and interdependence.

IB514 Selected Topics in International Trade [2 credits] This course is concerned with the economic analysis of selected topics in international trade and foreign direct investment. The focus is on the application of trade theory and evaluation of empirical evidence. Prerequisites for this course include a background in microeconomics, elementary mathematics and statistics. Fundamental knowledge of international trade theory and policy will also be essential.

IB515 International Politics of China [2 credits] This course will offer the students a grand landscape to assess China's role in the international arena. By the course, the students will be provided a theoretical framework for understanding contemporary international politics from the Chinese perspectives. Issues such as China's role in the international arena, China's foreign policy; its diplomatic practice and security concerns and China's involvement into regional integration and globalization will be discussed.

IB516 Selected Topics in WTO and China [2 credits] This course is concerned with the economic analysis of selected topics in WTO and Chinese cases. The focus is on the application of trade theory and evaluation of empirical evidence. Prerequisites for this course include a background in microeconomics. Fundamental knowledge of international trade theory and policy will also be essential.

IB520 International Financial Markets [3 credits] Over the last three decades, financial markets around the world have been transformed. Some changes have been gradual. For example, bank loans, straight debt, and common equity shares were once the dominant financial products. Now these products are being supplanted by commercial paper, financial futures, options and swaps. Other changes were more abrupt, such as the collapse of the Bretton Woods Agreement. In general these changes are in four aspects: the wider array of financial products, the increase in price volatility, the greater intensity of competition across financial markets and the increased incidence of financial crises. This transformation of financial markets raises many issues for private market participants and public policymakers. The purpose of this course is to describe the institutional setting and economics of pricing in the modern international financial markets, and then to outline the policy issues affecting private individuals, firms and the government. We will divide the international financial markets into four major groups and study them respectively: (1) foreign exchange, (2) offshore markets, (3) derivative securities, and (4) international asset portfolios. The requirement on the math skill will be minimum for this course.

IB522 Financial Economics [2 credits] This is an intermediate level course in financial economics. The focus will be on the economics interpretation of asset pricing theories. The course will begin with the introduction of the microstructure of the financial markets. Then we go through return predictability, decision making under uncertainty, consumption-based asset-pricing model. In the second part of this course, we will see how to price financial derivatives: futures, forward, swap, and option markets. Prerequisite: AE502 Macroeconomics and AE503 Econometrics

IB523 China’s Financial Markets [2 credits] Development of foreign exchange policies; foreign exchange markets, money and capital markets, banking reform; WTO and financial liberalization.

IB524 Topics in Corporate Financial Policy [2 credits] Aspects of corporate financial policies of typical Chinese firms will be examined. Topics include: Capital budgeting; cash and working capital management; derivatives bankruptcy; liquidation; and mergers and acquisitions.

IB 527 Topics in Financial derivatives [2 credits] the focus of this course is on derivative securities, i.e., securities whose payoffs depend on the values of the other "underlying" securities. The two major instruments are options and futures. We will study the organization of their markets, the mechanics of trading, trading strategies and, most importantly, pricing models for such securities.

IB530 International Marketing [3 credits] International marketing is an advanced course that is focused on international marketing management and strategy. First, the course will overview the fundamental concept and principles of contemporary marketing. Next, the course will focus on international environments. Then international marketing strategies will be discussed. Finally, the course will cover various aspects of developing and implementing international marketing programs. The objectives of the course are: (a)to provide the students with an understanding of the fundamental principles of contemporary marketing;(b) to develop the students' knowledge of and sensitivity to the unique cultural environment in which international marketing takes place; (c) to develop students' ability to make managerial decisions in international marketing; (d) to prepare students for possible career in international marketing.