Course: FIN 835
Course title: Seminar in International Financial Markets
Bulletin description: "International financial environment for business. Foreign exchange markets, eurocurrency markets, international bond markets, and international equity investing."
Semester: Spring 2008
Grade: B
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Instructor: Dr. Yuli Su
(This international woman of mystery
has no picture in the faculty directory,
so for now, her face will look like
a question mark.)
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Project work: Unfortunately, there isn't much worth looking back on for this class. I will NEVER be the number-cruncher that this class tries to shape you into. I enjoy the more qualitative side of life to be sure.
However, I did enjoy doing a presentation that actually only represented 5% of my grade. I reported to the class on the narrow trading band in which the Vietnamese dong is allowed to float. My presentation included a look at how the central bank of Vietnam is manipulating this band, partially in response to the weakness of the U.S. dollar, and partially in response to inflation. I tried to make the presentation non-technical by illustrating how a widening currency trading band is affecting Vietnamese people on a daily basis. Interesting stuff !!
For a group project, I was blessed with being able to work with three other talented students. Our mix of skills resulted in a high quality report that highlighted the challenges of diversifying a domestic-only portfolio with foreign investments. The addition of foreign investments can help decrease the risk of a domestic-only portfolio, however, the benefits can be negated once you introduce currency risk. If this class taught me anything it's leave it to the pro's. I'd rather rely on an analyst who has years of experience than the handful of techniques I learned in an elective class...
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