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Economic Policy

Code: 102468
Credits: 6
2026/2027
Degree programme Type Course
Business Administration and Management OP 4
Economics OB 3
Contemporary History, Politics and Economics OP 3
Contemporary History, Politics and Economics OP 4

Contact lecturer

Name :
Emilio Padilla Rosa
Email :
emilio.padilla@uab.cat

Teaching staff

Rosa Garcia Hernández
Alessio Ferdinando Federico Romarri

Group languages

You can consult this information at the end of the document.

Prerequisites

The knowledge resulting from having completed the courses Microeconomics I and Macroeconomics I.

Objectives

  • To identify the agents participating in the elaboration of the different economic policies
  • To recognize the different macroeconomic disequilibria, as well as the objectives of economic policy and their measurement
  • To analyze the economic policy objectives taking into account the gender perspective
  • To know the main instruments of economic policy and understand its functioning
  • To understand the transmission mechanisms between economic policy instruments and objectives
  • To identify the possible trade-offs and complementarities between economic policy objectives
  • To favor the access to relevant information about the objectives and instruments of the economic policy
  • To interpret the economic policy making of governments through the analysis of public budgets
  • To understand the constraints and opportunities that that internationalization processes involve in economic policy

Learning outcomes

  1. Capacity to adapt to changing environments.
  2. Capacity to continue future learning independently, acquiring further knowledge and exploring new areas of knowledge.
  3. Select and generate the information needed for each problem, analyse it and make decisions based on this information.
  4. A capacity of oral and written communication in Catalan, Spanish and English, which allows them to summarise and present the work conducted both orally and in writing.
  5. Organise work, in terms of good time management and organisation and planning.
  6. Demonstrate initiative and work independently when required.
  7. Work as part of a team and be able to argue own proposals and validate or refuse the arguments of others in a reasonable manner.
  8. Describe the main economic agents making up the Spanish and Catalan economy.
  9. Analyse the role of international institutions in the economy.
  10. Analyse the underlying problems in the coordination of economic policies.
  11. Assess economic policy decisions in its different spheres.
  12. Recognise the institutions and organisms through which public intervention and regulation of the economy take place.
  13. Define the concepts relating to the objectives and instruments of economic policy.
  14. Analyse the elaboration process of economic policy and the strategies of its agents.
  15. Make decisions in situations of uncertainty and show an enterprising and innovative spirit.
  16. Demonstrate initiative and work independently when required.
  17. Capacity to continue future learning independently, acquiring further knowledge and exploring new areas of knowledge.
  18. Identify the social, economic and environmental implications of academic and professional activities within the area of your own knowledge.
  19. Analyse the indicators of sustainability of academic and professional activities in the areas of knowledge, integrating social, economic and environmental dimensions.
  20. Weigh up the impact of any long- or short-term difficulty, harm or discrimination that could be caused to certain persons or groups by the actions or projects.
  21. Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  22. Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  23. Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  24. Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  25. Students must develop the necessary learning skills in order to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  26. Propose way of evaluating projects and actions to improve sustainability.
  27. Demonstrate motivation regarding the quality of the work performed and sensitivity regarding the consequences on the environment and society.
  28. Demonstrate capacity to adapt to changing environments.
  29. Organise work in relation to good time management and planning.
  30. Value ethical commitment in professional practice.
  31. Select and generate the information necessary for each problem, analyse it and take decisions based on that information.
  32. Lead multidisciplinary and multicultural teams, implement new projects, coordinate, negotiate and manage conflicts.
  33. Use of the available information technology and adaptation to new technological environments.
  34. Students must be capable of managing their own time, planning their own study, managing the relationship with their tutor or adviser, as well as setting and meeting deadlines for a work project.
  35. Examine the influence and the role of Spanish public institutions in the economy.
  36. Identify the role of the public sector in the Spanish economy.
  37. Analyse the problems underlying the coordination of economic policies.
  38. Identify the functions of the public sector as regulator of the economy, and the principles on which it is based.
  39. Analyse economic facts and decisions about efficiency and equity.
  40. Analyse public policies.
  41. Identify the institutions and organisms through which public intervention and regulation of the economy take place.
  42. Communicating in oral and written form in Catalan, Spanish and English, in order to be able to summarise and present the carried out project in both forms.
  43. Searching for documentary sources starting from concepts.
  44. Develop strategies for autonomous learning.
  45. Students must be capable of assessing the quality of their own work.
  46. Generating innovative and competitive proposals in research and professional activity.
  47. Respect the diversity and plurality of ideas, people and situations.
  48. Demonstrating a comprehension of the analysis of social phenomena presented in English, as well as observing their strengths and weaknesses.

Contents

Contents


The course presents the basic elements required to analyze and understand economic policy. The course reviews the various government interventions in the economy and discusses their implications. General aspects, objectives and policy instruments are discussed.


Syllabus


  1. Introduction to economic policy
  2. Public intervention and economic regulation
  3. Objectives, instruments and policies
  4. The elaboration of economic policy
  5. Employment
  6. Prices stability
  7. Economic growth
  8. Quality of life and the environment
  9. Income redistribution
  10. Monetary policy
  11. Fiscal policy
  12. Incomes policy
  13. Foreign policy and international coordination of economic policy


Learning activities and methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Tutorials and monitoring 8 0.32 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 15, 16, 17, 20, 22, 23, 24, 27, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 42, 43, 44, 47, 48
Workshop and case studies 17 0.68 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 37, 40, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48
Information collection and exercices preparation 17 0.68 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48
Lectures 32.5 1.3 2, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26, 47, 48
Reading and studying the course materials 72 2.88 2, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 25, 26, 29, 44, 48

The lectures highlight the most important contents of each subject. When slides or PowerPoint presentations are used, these do not substitute class notes and the examination of the compulsory bibliography.

Workshop and case studies will follow the guidelines given by the teacher. These guidelines and other material will be available at “Campus Virtual”

“Campus Virutal” will support the teaching tasks and the interaction between students and teachers.

The proposed teaching methodology may undergo some modifications according to the restrictions imposed by the health authorities on on-campus courses.

Annotation: within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Assessment

Continuous assessment activities

Title Weight Hours ECTS Learning outcomes
Final exam (second partial exam) 40% 2 0.08 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21, 25, 26, 31, 35, 36, 37, 39, 40, 41, 42, 44
First partial exam 40% 1.5 0.06 4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21, 25, 31, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 44
Exercises delivered in class 20% 0 0 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48

The completion of assessment activities is subject to the provisions set out in this course guide and in the "Policy of the School of Economics and Business on the Detection of Irregularities during Assessment Activities", which regulates the conditions under which assessment tasks are conducted and the procedures applicable in cases where indications of irregularities are detected. Students are encouraged to consult the policy.


The course will be evaluated according to three types of activities:

  • First partial exam (40%) and final exam (second partial exam) (40%)

There will be two exams, which will evaluate half of the course each. Each exam weights 40% of the total grade. The first exam will be scheduled after the first half of the course in a date indicated by the teacher at the beginning of the course and the second at the end of the course, in the dates established by the Faculty. They will be written exams and their characteristics (open answer or test, number of questions, etc.) will be previously explained by the teacher.

  • Exercises delivered in class (20%):

Different exercises will be delivered in class following the guidelines provided by the teacher. These exercises account for 20% of the final grade and may be used to evaluate attendance and participation.

The final grade will be the weighed result of the different assessment activities of the course. If the student's grade is 5 or higher, the student passes the course and cannot be subject to further evaluation. If the student grade is less than 3.5, the student will have to repeat the course the following year.

A student is considered “non-evaluable” in final grade, whenever he/she did not participate to any evaluation activity. Therefore, a student participating to one or more single activities will be graded in accordance to the results of those activities evenif he/she does not show up at the exams.

Comprehensive evaluation

By requesting the comprehensive evaluation the student waives the option of continuous evaluation.

The comprehensive evaluation must be requested at the Academic Management (Gestió acadèmica) of the Campus where the degree is taught. The request must be filed according to the procedure and the deadline established by the administrative calendar of the Faculty of Economics and Business.

Student attendance is mandatory on the day of the comprehensive assessment. The date will be the same as that of the final exam of the semester as per the evaluation calendar published by the Faculty of Economics and Business and approved by the Faculty's Teaching and Academic Affairs Committee.

The comprehensive evaluation will consist in a written exam (100% of weight in the final assessment), which should be carried out in person. The duration of the activity will be 90 minutes.

The same "non-evaluable" criteria will apply as for the continuous assessment. The same retake system will apply as for the continuous assessment. The review of the final grade follows the same procedure as for the continuous assessment.

Calendar of evaluation activities

The dates of the evaluation activities (midterm exams, exercises in the classroom, assignments, ...) will be announced well in advance during the semester.

The date of the final exam is scheduled in the assessment calendar of the Faculty.

"The dates of evaluation activities cannot be modified, unless there is an exceptional and duly justified reason why an evaluation activity cannot be carried out. In this case, the degree coordinator will contact both the teaching staff and the affected student, and a new date will be scheduled within the same academic period to make up for the missed evaluation activity." Section 1 of Article 264. Calendar of evaluation activities (Academic Regulations UAB).

Students of the Faculty of Economics and Business, who in accordance with the previous paragraph need to change an evaluation activity date must process the request by filling out an Application for exams' reschedule: e-Formulari per a la reprogramació de proves.


Grade revision process

After all grading activities have ended, students will be informed of the date and way in which the course grades will be published. Students will be also be informed of the procedure, place, date and time of grade revision following University regulations.


Retake Process

"To be eligible to participate in the retake process, it is required for students to have been previously been evaluated for at least two thirds of the total evaluation activities of the subject." Section 2 of Article 261. The recovery (UAB Academic Regulations). Additionally, it is required that the student to have achieved an average grade of the subject greater than or equal to 3.5 and less than 5.

The date of the retake exam will be posted in the calendar of evaluation activities of the Faculty. Students who take this exam and pass, will get a grade of 5 for the subject. If the student does not pass the retake, the grade will remain unchanged, and hence, student will fail the course.


Irregularities in evaluation activities

In spite of other disciplinary measures deemed appropriate, and in accordance with current academic regulations, "in the case that the student makes any irregularity that could lead to a significant variation in the grade of an evaluation activity, it will be graded with a 0, regardless of the disciplinary process that can be instructed. In case of various irregularities occur in the evaluation of the same subject, the final grade of this subject will be 0". Section 11 of Article 266. Results of the evaluation. (UAB Academic Regulations).


Use of AI

In this course, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is permitted only for the preparation of those assignments in which the teacher explicitly authorises their use, provided that the final result reflects a significant contribution from the student in terms of analysis and personal reflection. The student must clearly identify which parts were generated using this technology, specify the tools used, and include a critical reflection on how these tools influenced both the process and the final outcome of the activity. Lack of transparency in the use of AI will be considered academic dishonesty and may result in a grade penalty for the activity or more serious sanctions in severe cases.

Bibliography

Basic references:

Bénassy-Quéré, Agnès; Coeuré, Benoit; Jacquet, Pierre; Pisani-Ferry, Jean (2018), Economic Policy. Theory and Practice. Oxford University Press, New York (Second edition).


Complementary references:

Bacaria, Jordi; Brunet, Ferran (2012) "Regulatory quality and competitiveness in Europe" in González Fajardo, F., Benítez Rochel, J.J. and Pérez Moreno S. (Coords.) Propuestas de Política Económica ante los Desafíos Actuales, Delta Publicaciones, Madrid, pp. 89-123.

Baldwin, Richard; Weder di Mauro, Beatrice (2020) Mitigating the COVID Economic Crisis: Act Fast and Do Whatever It Takes. CEPR Press, London.

Cuadrado Roura, Juan Ramón (dir) (2023): Política Económica. Elaboración, Objetivos e Instrumentos, McGraw-Hill, Madrid (7ª edición).

Banco de España (2026) Anual Report 2025. Madrid. Available at: https://www.bde.es/wbe/en/publicaciones/informes-memorias-anuales/informe-anual/informe-anual-2025.html

ECB (2023) Annual Report 2022. ECB Frankfurt am Main. Available at: https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/annrep/ecb.ar2022~8ae51d163b.en.pdf

ECB (2024) Annual Report 2023. ECB Frankfurt am Main. Available at: https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/annrep/ecb.ar2023~d033c21ac2.en.pdf

ECB (2025) Annual Report 2024. ECB. Frankfurt am Main. Available at: https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/annrep/ecb.ar2024~8402d8191f.en.pdf

ECB (2026) Annual Report 2025. ECB. Frankfurt am Main. Available at: https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/annrep/ecb.ar2025~b7f898b33d.en.pdf

Euromemo Group (2022) EuroMemorandum 2022. Caught between the Covid-19 crisis and the war in Ukraine: the EU in 2022. Available at: https://euromemo.eu/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/uploads/euromemorandum2022_final_draft_28march_2022.pdf

Euromemo Group (2023) EuroMemorandum 2023. Europe in Polycrisis: Struggles for Survival, Climate and Energy Justice. Available at: https://euromemo.eu/wp-content/uploads/pdfs/uploads/euromemorandum_2023.pdf

Euromemo Group (2024) EuroMemorandum 2024. How should we cope with the polycrisis? Available at: https://euromemo.eu/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/EuroMemorandum-2024.pdf

Euromemo Group (2025) EuroMemorandum 2025. Europe and the world beyond the polycrisis: Possible futures. Available at: https://euromemo.eu/wp-Euromemo Group (2025) Euromemo Group (2026) EuroMemorandum 2026. Aspects and implications of EU militarising. Alternatives for a Progressive AgendaAvailable at: https://euromemo.eu/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/EuroMemorandum-2026.pdf

Fernández Díaz, Andrés; Parejo Gámir, José Alberto; Rodríguez Saiz, Luis (2011) Política Económica, McGraw Hill (4ª edition rev.)

Fernández Díaz, Andrés (dir.) (1999) Fundamentos y Papel Actual de la Política Económica, Pirámide, Madrid.

Ochando Claramunt, Carlos (coord.) (2021) Políticas Económicas Coyunturales. Objetivos e Instrumentos. Tirant lo Blanch, Valencia (2ª edición)

Ochando Claramunt, Carlos (coord.) (2025) Retos futuros de la política económica y social: problemas, objetivos y estrategias. Aula Magna, McGraw-Hill, Madrid.

Padilla Rosa, Emilio; Ramos-Martín, Jesús (Eds.) (2023) Elgar Encyclopedia of Ecological Economics, Edward Elgar Publishing, Cheltenham, UK and Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Sánchez Andrés, Antonio (2021) Introducción a la Política Económica. Concepto, Estructura y Formación. Tirant lo Blanch, Valencia.

Sánchez Andrés, Antonio (coord.) (2022) Políticas Económicas Estructurales. Tirant lo Blanch, Valencia.


Web links:

European Central Bank: http://www.ecb.int/home/html/index.en.html

Banco de España: http://www.bde.es

World Banc: http://www.worldbank.org/

European Commission: Economy and Finance: http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/economy_finance/index_en.htm

Departament d'Economia i Hisenda (Generalitat de Catalunya): http://economia.gencat.cat/ca/inici/

International Monetary Fund: http://www.imf.org/external/spanish/index.htm

Instituto Nacional de Estadística: http://www.ine.es/

Ministerio de Hacienda: https://www.hacienda.gob.es/

Ministerio de Asuntos Económicos y Transición Digital: https://portal.mineco.gob.es/

Servicio público de empleo estatal: http://www.sepe.es/

Software

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Course groups and languages

The information provided is provisional until November 30. After this date, you will be able to consult the language of each group through this link. To access the information, you will need to enter the course CODE

Type of teaching Group Language Semester Shift
(TE) Theory 1 Spanish first semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 1 Spanish first semester morning-mixed
(PLAB) Practical laboratories 1 Spanish first semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 8 English first semester morning-mixed
(PAUL) Classroom practices 8 English first semester morning-mixed
(PLAB) Practical laboratories 8 English first semester morning-mixed
(TE) Theory 51 Catalan first semester afternoon
(PAUL) Classroom practices 51 Catalan first semester afternoon
(PLAB) Practical laboratories 51 Catalan first semester afternoon