ECO 306 Project Two Guidelines and Rubric

Overview

Your second project for this course is to create an informative research paper. In the paper, you will compare and contrast the structure and operation of the central bank of the United Statesthe Federal Reserveand the central bank of another country.

This research will help you understand the role of a central bank, or monetary authority. Analyzing the structure and operation of the Federal Reserve in comparison to a foreign central bank will help you understand the monetary policy tools. The foreign central banks you can choose from are listed below. By doing this project, you may learn that the domestic structure is superior or inferior to an international counterpart and suggest changes.

The prework for this project is divided into two milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure a quality final submission. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Four and Five. The project will be submitted in Module Seven.

In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes:

• Compare national monetary models in terms of the financial structures of their economies and their process for financial intermediation
• Analyze regulation and conduct of monetary policy for its impact on international and domestic economics

Directions

Imagine you have just finished your education at SNHU and are starting a new job as a junior economist at a think tank or research institute. The institute is focused on monetary policy. Your supervisor wants you to create a detailed report about the structure and operation of the Federal Reserve and another bank. You can choose the other bank from the list below.

In Project Two, you will write a research paper comparing and contrasting the structure and operation of the central bank of the United Statesthe Federal Reserveand the central bank of another country chosen from the list below. You will identify the foreign central bank you have chosen and describe its financial structure, the primary tools it uses to control the money supply, and the role it has in the process of financial intermediation. You will also compare the macroeconomic conditions in each country and the banking regulations of the two central banks.

You may choose from the following banks

• The People's Bank of China (PBC)

Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:

1. Introduction
   1. Identify the foreign country you have chosen and explain how its central bank was established.
   2. Describe the financial structure of both the central bank you have chosen and the Federal Reserve. Do these central banks operate as independent entities with monetary autonomy?
   3. Describe the process of financial intermediation and what role the central bank you have chosen and the Federal Reserve play in that process. How do firms borrow and lend, and how do the central banks help facilitate that process?
2. Central Banking: Explain the current macroeconomic conditions (unemployment, inflation, and economic growth [GDP] rates) that the Federal Reserve and the central bank you have chosen observe in each country, and compare the performance of the two countries.
3. Monetary Policy
   1. Explain the primary tools used by the central bank and the Federal Reserve to control the money supply in each country.
   2. Describe how each monetary authority uses these tools to impact macroeconomic performance.
   3. Compare the banking regulations of the central bank you have chosen and the Federal Reserve.
4. Conclusion: Using your research as a guide, assess the overall performance of each entity. Could one bank learn a lesson from the other?