From tariffs to inflation to buying Canadian, the economy — and its many ups and downs — is dominating headlines.

With market turmoil having such far-reaching impact and showing no signs of slowing down, Brock University Associate Professor and Chair of Economics Lester Kwong says every student can benefit from gaining a better understanding of the economy and the nuances of policy decisions.

“On face value, many policies may appear appealing — for example, tariffs will increase government revenue — but there are many intricate relationships associated with such policies,” says Kwong. “In the case of tariffs, the higher purchase price will inevitably reduce the demand for such commodities, possibly leading to the producer scaling down and resulting in even higher prices.”

Those who want to better understand economic principles have several options for study in the Spring and Summer Terms, starting with the basics.

Two introductory courses cover Principles of Microeconomics (ECON 1P91) — decision-making by individuals and businesses and analysis of the markets they function in — and Principles of Macroeconomics (ECON 1P92) — decision-making at a national scale with a focus on fiscal and monetary policies, exploring concepts like inflation, gross domestic product and unemployment.

Intermediate Microeconomics (ECON 2P21) and Intermediate Macroeconomics (ECON 2P22) dive deeper into these areas, while in Foundations of Economic Analysis (ECON 2P30), students develop mathematical skills necessary for economic analysis.

Students who have an interest in global affairs and are considering future careers in development work examine issues of income inequality, poverty, trade and economic growth from a developing world perspective in Economic Development (ECON 2P17).

Econometrics, or the ways economists discover relationships and patterns in data, are the focus of both an introductory course (ECON 2P90) and a course designed for non-majors, Business Econometrics with Applications (ECON 2P91), where students will look at analysis used for forecasting and business decisions.

Upper-year students look at monetary policy, inflation and the demand and supply of money, among other topics, in Money and Banking II (ECON 3P04). And in Forecasting Using Time Series Data (ECON 3P92), students learn how economists predict future trends and behaviours.

In the Summer Term, the Centre for Women’s and Gender Studies offers Women, Gender and the Economy (WGST 2P86), taking a different lens on the economic issues in a course cross-listed with Canadian Studies, Labour Studies and Sociology. The class looks at women in the Canadian labour market and select policy issues, including how recent developments in the market have affected women and men.

For a full list of Brock’s Spring and Summer Term course offerings, visit brocku.ca/springsummer