Geoeconomics
Spring 2025
Wednesday, 12:15 - 16:00
Location : Pérolles 17, Room 001
ECTS: 4.5
The global economic order is in upheaval. The trade wars instigated during the first Trump presidency in the US, the pandemic with its stressed supply chains, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine have shaken up a world order that has existed since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. As trade wars are likely to become more virulent in the second Trump presidency, an even more critical challenge is looming: the rivalry between the US and China is coming to a dangerous head: from a trade war to a technology war, and from a new cold war to possibly a hot war.
The rules-based system of the post-war era is disintegrating. International relations are increasingly based on unilateral power and recklessness instead of legality and multilateral cooperation. In this reality, economic policy instruments are used for geopolitical objectives — this is the field of geoeconomics.
These developments are particularly challenging for a small, open economy like Switzerland. So far, Switzerland has been an undisputable globalization winner, relying heavily on the rules-based order. Today, foreign trade accounts for 40 percent of Switzerland's economic activity. The big question is how a small country should adapt to such a new world order, where might and power replace rules and due process. Whereby, small country is relative: Switzerland is currently the 20th largest economy in the world, even in terms of its nominal gross domestic product.
We discuss these geoeconomic developments from a Swiss perspective. What are the major challenges for the Swiss economy, society, and politics? What are the major opportunities? What are the major policy options? We discuss topics such as conflict, trade, money and finance, public finance, regulation, institutions, and politics. Hence, geoeconomics is not a field within economics but rather the economic approach to understanding the implications of geopolitical dynamics; in this course, applied to the case of Switzerland.
Part I introduces various topics and discuss recent research. This part requires the active preparation of the literature and emphasizes class discussions.
Part II considers the Swiss case. Students choose a topic, prepare “policy briefs” discussing specific challenges for Switzerland, and present their evaluations in class.