This is an introductory course in economics aiming to help students to start thinking as economists and introduce them to the basic concepts of micro-economics. Initially, the lectures focus on the basic principles of economics. Next, the lectures focus on analysing the mechanism through which the forces of demand and supply determine the prices in the markets and the efficiency of the markets. The course is also interested to examine the efficiency of the markets and the effects of various public policies on the markets and the efficiency of the markets. Finally, the course examines the cost of production and how produces make their decisions under different market structures.

The purpose of this course is to understand basic macroeconomic principles. It starts with the introduction of the basic measures of macroeconomic performance such as CPI index, GDP and GDP deflator. Then it investigates what factors induce growth and low inflation in the long run and concludes with the factors that lead to deviations from an economy’s long run trend. Learning Outcomes To be able to use common measures of macroeconomic performance and understand their limitations. Also, to be able to understand what are good measures that promote long run growth and what are the short term policy measures that can limit fluctuations around the long run trend.

The course aims to familiarize students to the basic concepts of limit, continuity, differentiation and integral. Furthermore the course purposes to introduce student to the theory of optimization and help them to understand appropriate mathematical methods that will lead them to study and solve economic, administrative and other problems using mathematical analysis

The course aims to introduce students to the basic statistical concepts and the analytical procedures used in quantitative research in economics and business administration. Students should understand basic principles of Probability Theory and Statistics to be able to apply basic statistical methods. By the end of the course the students will be able to process data, prepare tables and charts and present and analyze statistical results.

This course gives students the opportunity to make full use of Information Technology (IT) in their future studies and careers. The course starts with examining the contribution of information systems to businesses, and the prospects offered by IT development. It, then, covers basic topics related to information technology, its applications in the business environment, modern methods of development and administration of information systems. The students will then become advance users of the MS-EXCEL program for data management and analysis. The course also prepares students to be able to use statistical packages, such as the EVIEWS and SPSS, that they may need to use in their final years of study.

The objectives of the course are the following:

 · To develop students’ knowledge of the legal framework in Cyprus by introducing them to the sources of Cyprus law and the court structure.

· To familiarise students with the broader context in which law operates, such as the principles of statutory interpretation, human rights law and the way this applies to legal application and analysis

· To provide students with an understanding of specific key legal areas relating to a variety of business aspects.

 · To give students a strong and adequate background to the relevant case law and legislative framework that affects the operation of business.

The main objective of this course is to introduce students to international trade that is economic exchanges between nations. The course examines exchanges between nations in the form of goods and services. The first part of the course presents an overview of the global economy and the nature and significance of exchanges between nations. The course continues with an introduction into the economic theories of international trade. It also examines the costs and benefits to a nation from its participation in international exchanges. The course then takes up the nature and forms of barriers to trade that different nations impose on the flow of international trade and the reasons for their imposition. The course emphasizes the application of theories to current issues in world trade and illustrates the arguments with specific examples drawn mostly from the experience of the European Union in world trade

The course is an introduction to international finance, that is financial exchanges between nations. The first part is a general overview of international financial exchanges and introduces the various concepts of a nation’s balance of payments. Subsequently the course presents a general overview of the foreign exchange market and the parity conditions determined by the market. The course then discusses the basic balance of payments theories and theories of the determination of the exchange rate. Throughout the course emphasis is given on the applications of international finance to contemporary inter country financial relations and examples are provided to illustrate the theories drawn from the experience of the European Union and the role of the euro in the global financial system.

The purpose of this course is to understand how different economic agents such as households, firms and governments make decisions and how those interact together to determine prices and quantities in an economy. The course starts by introducing consumption given preferences and other factors which gives rise to the demand curve both with and without uncertainty. Then the course moves to how firms choose prices and quantities under different market regimes such as perfect competition, monopoly, oligopoly etc. Finally the course makes an introduction to game theory and Nash equilibrium.

The course’s purpose is to teach students to be able to answer macroeconomic questions using simple theoretical models. It presents how theoretical models are constructed and the way they are validated using empirical evidence. Initially the course investigates the long run period and specifically how economic growth and inflation are generated in the long run. Then it moves to the short run and explains why the economy may deviate from its long run trend creating unemployment and/or inflation. Last, the course refers to Central banks and how monetary policy affects the short-term equilibrium using its tools of monetary policy.

The course is designed to provide the students with sufficient knowledge of mathematics which is essential to understand advanced topics related to quantitative methods. It also aims to enable students to apply these mathematical techniques, solve various problems using specialised software and to help them develop and enhance their critical thinking. The course includes a laboratory in MATLAB (or Octave) and LINDO or (solver) Excel.

The course is designed to provide the students with sufficient knowledge of statistics which is essential to understand advanced topics related to statistics. It covers topics related to random variables, covariance/correlation, central limit theorem, method of moments, maximum likelihood, distributions, hypothesis testing, regression analysis, etc.

Presentation of the basic concepts and tools used by businesses and investors in financial decision making. The course consists of lectures and problems related to Financial institutions, markets and debt instruments issued by the government of Cyprus, loanable funds theory, determinants of interest rates, yield curves, spot and forward rates, Greek and Cypriot financial crisis, time value of money with applications, private and business loan financing, types and pricing of bonds, evaluation and pricing of stocks, measurement of investment risk, Capital Asset Pricing Model, capital budgeting and cash-flow computation.

The main objective of the course is to introduce students to the fundamentals of financial management. The course aims to provide students with a thorough understanding of the main approaches used by corporations and financial institutions to manage working capital, inventory, and accounts, appraise investments and manage risk. The educational objectives are: Ø Introduce students to the fundamentals of financial management. Ø Develop a good understanding of the importance of corporate strategy, the risks involved in financial decisions and these can be managed. Ø Acquire a good knowledge of the main approaches used to manage working capital, inventory, accounts receivables, accountas payables and cash. Ø Accustom students with invesment appraisal techniques in the presence of taxation, inflation and risk. Ø Introduce students to risk management and apply risk management strategies for hedging interest rate risk and foreign exchange risk using futures and options.

The course introduces fundamental principles related to shipping. The course aims at introducing students to the maritime industry. Shipping is one of the most important industries worldwide and is a major driver of globalization; since but for shipping, no international trade would have flourished. Without international trade, the global economy would not have the form it has today, and consumers will not have enjoyed most goods they have today; hence, there would be no global economic growth. This course describes and analyzes issues related to the design and organization of the global shipping industry

This module enables students to understand the concepts, techniques and methods for making sound economic decisions in the shipping industry. Specifically, the module will discuss in-depth concepts such as the economic structure of the shipping industry and its main characteristics that set it distinct from other industries, the demand and supply forces in the shipping industry, the infrastructure including port facilities, the freight rate contracts and the four shipping markets: i.e. freight rate, newbuilding, second-hand and demolition markets. Finally, the module will introduce students to special topics of shipping economics such as the cyclicality and seasonality of freight rates and vessel prices along liner container shipping.

This is an introductory course in Econometrics. The course is designed to provide the students with sufficient knowledge of statistics and econometrics necessary to understand and be able to evaluate and interpret econometrics researches that use basic linear regression methods. The course begins with a link between statistics and linear regression model and its assumptions. Violations of assumptions and their consequences in estimation process are further examined.

The course offers an introduction to financial econometrics for second-cycle studies. It covers the main parts of the spectrum of quantitative financial economics, discusses important results in the empirical finance literature, and provides a comprehensive knowledge to do empirical work in financial practice.

The aim of this module is to develop a comprehensive picture of Corporate Financial Management Business at a theoretical and practical level. The topics covered include theories of capital markets, evaluation and selection of sources of financing, and the relation between firm financial value and dividend policy. An additional advantage of the module is the parallel use of the English language which helps students familiarize with the international English terminology.

The course aims to help the student to understand the theory and practice of modern banking financial institutions. The student will be able to understand the special nature of banking operations, the structure of the banking industry, diversification of banking, insurance and banking, international banking and multinational banks. Specific topics covered include the regulation of the banking sector, the banking sector in emerging markets, banking reforms, the banking sector in Cyprus. Moreover, the course refers to central banking monetary policy and how it affects banks, interest rates and the economy.

The aim of this module is to provide a comprehensive overview of asset pricing and portfolio management in theory and practice. This module provides students those financial tools to be prepared for real financial markets scenarios. Specific case studies (coursework) help students to understand better various topics in capital markets.

The course describes the nature, features, and markets for derivative products like options and futures contracts. It analyzes the factors that determine their value and the basic valuation techniques, as well as their applications in the financial activities of the company and in the investment decisions. It also looks specifically at their role in hedging in reducing financial risk.

The course examines issues facing multinational corporations and global investors in international financial markets. The course analyzes the different challenges and opportunities facing participants in global financial markets as well as the theories that underlie transactions by global investors. The course examines equilibrium conditions in international financial markets. Subsequently a brief introduction into instruments of hedging foreign exchange risk is presented. The main component of the course analyses the exposure of the operations of multinational corporations to global financial conditions. The following topic is the capital availability in global markets. The different methods of corporations raising capital globally (debt or equity capital) are presented. Summing up the international diversification of investors’ portfolios is analyzed. Throughout emphasis is placed on the operations of multinational operations in the European Union.

The main objectives of the course are the following:

 · To develop students’ knowledge and understanding of key issues in asset allocation and portfolio composition and management.

· To provide students with the opportunity to develop the ability to critically understand current theoretical and empirical research in the field of portfolio theories and their implications on alternative portfolio composition and management strategies.

The aim of this course is to advance the students’ knowledge and understanding of the application of a variety of International Accounting Standards (IAS) and concepts for the presentation and preparation of financial statements.

To advance the students' knowledge and understanding of key issues in more specialised management accounting topics and to have a broader background in management accounting techniques. Management Accounting II focuses on building competencies in the evaluation, assessment and interpretation of management accounting information with the aim of improving decision making and performance evaluation.

The main objective of the course is to introduce students to the fundamental principles of shipping finance. Issues covered include, the theory of capital financing, the history of shipping finance, ship financing sources, shipping appraisal assessments, credit analysis and risk management principles.

Issues covered include the Mechanisms and the Operation of the Institute's Time Clauses (Hulls) Institute Cargo Clauses and the P & I Clubs

The course aims to introduce students to the basic principles and concepts of maritime law. Initially, the lectures focus on the relevant legislation of the Admiralty court and jurisdiction; especially dealing with the ship arrest matter, as a mean of protection of the creditors. Next, the lectures focus on additional concepts of shipping law such as general average, salvage and collisions. Finally, the course aims to assist students to develop a basic legal way of thinking by applying the necessary mechanisms and tools to resolve the various disputes and claims inherent to the maritime sector.

The aim of this course is to familiarize students with the concepts and techniques for effective shipping operations management. In particular the course aims to fulfil the following objectives:

· Provide in-depth understanding of the ship management market and ship management functions and operations

· Introduce the concepts of ship registration

 · Facilitate in-depth understanding of issues pertaining to the management of safety and pollution prevention in shipping

· Introduce aspects of measuring, managing and improving ship management performance.

The aim of this course is to provide in-depth and holistic understanding of charter markets, chartering practice and charter party analysis in dry cargo and tanker shipping. Content includes the procedures and practices in chartering merchant ships in the dry cargo and tanker markets, their commercial employment under various forms of chartering and the detailed calculation of financial (freight) performance, voyage planning and laytime estimations. The module provides an in-depth analysis of charterparty forms and adopts a legal and commercial perspective to analyze significant clauses and to explain various specialized terms in dry cargo and chartering contracts. The market structure of dry cargo and tanker industries are also analyzed, and an overview of the practitioners involved (brokers, owners, charterers) is provided as are the sources of data and information required to initiate, negotiate, agree, execute and assess a successful charter party contract in the dry bulk and tanker markets.

The objectives of the course are the following:

· To familiarise students with the legal rules, statutes and regulations relating to companies and other business formations.

 · To familiarise students with the legal framework within whicha company is registered, administered, operates and may potentially be liquidated or dissolved.

· Provide students with the knowledge relating to anti-money laundering and compliance regimes, and protection of personal data legislation and rules.

· Offer students all the knowledge concerning company case law.

The aim of the course is the development of advanced quantitative, statistical and software skills and their use for the analysis of empirical problems (data analysis) and decision making. The course includes the presentation and analysis of research work.

The main objective of the course is to introduce students to the approaches of managing risks in international commodity markets. The course aims to provide students with a thorough understanding of the main characteristics of international commodity markets, the risks involved to market participants and the mechanics of trading and hedging through commodity derivatives with emphasis on energy and shipping risk management. The educational objectives are: Ø Introduce students to the theoretical background for the application of trading and hedging strategies in international commodity markets. Ø Develop a good understanding of commodity market characteristics, the risks involved and how derivative instruments can be used to manage risks. Ø Acquire a good knowledge of the main option trading strategies in commodity markets with emphasis on shipping and freight markets. Ø Accustom students with applying risk management strategies for hedging price risk using futures and options contracts as well as for speculating.

The main objectives of this course are to develop the ability of students to use the information in the financial statements for investment, financing and management decision-making. In particular, the emphasis will be on assessing the economic data of an enterprise, such as industry characteristics, competitive strategy, past performance, risk and quality of financial information, and future performance forecasts that help assess the fundamental value of the holding of a business using different valuation frameworks.

To develop knowledge and skills in understanding and applying accounting standards and the theoretical framework in the preparation of financial statements of entities, including groups and how to analyze and interpret those financial statements.

The Audit and Assurance syllabus is essentially divided into five areas. The syllabus starts with the nature, purpose and scope of assurance engagements both internal and external, including the statutory audit, its regulatory environment, and introduces governance and professional ethics relating to audit and assurance. It then leads into planning and risk assessment audit. The syllabus then covers a range of areas relating to an audit of financial statements including the scope of internal control. These include, evaluating internal controls, audit evidence, and a review of the financial statements. In addition to final review procedures, the final section concentrates on reporting, including the form and content of the independent auditor’s report.

This syllabus introduces candidates to the subject of taxation and provides the core knowledge of the underlying principles and major technical areas of taxation, as they affect the activities of individuals and businesses. In this syllabus, candidates are introduced to the rationale behind and the functions of the tax system. The syllabus then considers the separate taxes that an accountant would need to have a detailed knowledge of, such as income tax from self-employment, employment and investments; the corporation tax liability of individual companies and groups of companies; special contribution for the defence liabilities and capital gains tax liabilities of individuals and companies; the social insurance contribution liabilities of both employed and self-employed persons; and the value added tax liability of businesses. Having covered the core areas of the basic taxes, the candidate should be able to compute tax liabilities, explain the basis of their calculations, apply tax planning techniques for individuals and companies and identify the compliance issues for each major tax through a variety of business and personal scenarios and situations.

The aim of the course is the development of advanced quantitative, statistical, optimization and software programs skills with the purpose of applying them to the analysis of empirical (data analysis) and decision making problems in shipping. The course includes the use of software and the presentation and analysis of research work.

This module examines different features of supply chain management and in particular ways to make a supply chain efficient. Topics examined include the concept and definition of a supply chain, the operational properties of a supply chain, distribution networks, location of infrastructure, inventory control management, measures of performance for a supply chain and global distribution and logistics.

This module examines several issues related with port economics. Specifically, it introduces the main functions of ports, their main users (carriers, shippers, passengers) and their performance. In addition, the module provides an in-depth investigation of the operational choices of port operators and the costs associated with each choice. Special topics of this module are the operational objectives of ports, ports’ pricing policy and port investments. Finally, the module incorporates special topics, regarding port safety and security and the future of ports in a global scale.

In this course the student is required to prepare a Thesis under the supervision of a professor of the Department. The student is expected to complete an independent research on a (real-world) business topic using their knowledge and skill-set (with the approval of his / her academic supervisor). This module aims:

· To provide students with the necessary training to undertake advanced-level research in Finance / Shipping / Economics / Accounting;

 · To provide students with an advanced understanding of the relevance and importance of alternative epistemological positions in the social sciences and the nature of both qualitative and quantitative approaches to research;

· To develop students’ understanding at an advanced level of the nature of research in the social sciences, by examining the study skills necessary to manage and undertake a research project;

· To provide students with opportunities to be familiar with the frontier empirical and theoretical research;

· To provide students with the opportunity to conduct an in-depth investigation at an advanced level of an issue which is applicable in the real world.

 · The positioning of the thesis at the end of the programme is intended to promote integration of material covered in the core and optional modules.

The main objective of the Practical Training is to help students understand the professional side of the Financial and Shipping sector, by providing them with employability in real working conditions. Students can obtain a comprehensive picture of the environment related to their academic studies and enhance their readiness to face the challenges as well as the opportunities relevant to their area of interest. The Department of Commerce, Finance and Shipping of the Cyprus University of Technology highly benefits from the strong links created with industry.

The objective of the course is to enable the students to develop knowledge and understanding of the underlying principles and concepts relating to financial accounting and technical proficiency in the use of double-entry accounting techniques including the preparation of basic financial statements. In addition students will cover topics in conceptual and regulatory frameworks, annual reporting, and interpretation of accounts, international accounting and creative accounting such as fraud and internal controls.

The course aims to enable students to develop knowledge and understanding of how to prepare and process basic cost and quantitative information to support management in planning and decision making. Management Accounting covers both cost and decision making. In the former the topics of costing and planning control and performance are covered whilst in the latter, both short term and long term decisions are considered.

A theoretical lesson which aims to students a general idea of what is ethical in business, a general development issues of interest to modern businessmen with several references to case studies, dilemmas and discussion of recent issues such as transparency, meritocracy, ethical values.

The general objective of this three-hour per week, 4-ECTS credit (European Credits Transfer and Accumulation System) required degree level course is to enable students to communicate competently at a Β1-B2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages on issues related to students’ social and academic life (university, curriculum, field of study), as well as on issues related to their future professional careers (occupations, types of companies, international marketing mistakes, leadership, etc.). Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) and culture learning are done through communicative situations deriving from authentic-like communication situations students may experience in their lives during their studies and professional careers. Language competence is acquired through the use of text types, scenarios, and roles which promote the production and understanding of spoken and written language related to the topics covered.

The course is based on current learning theories, such as constructivism and social constructivism and on student-centered teaching methods.  It develops both language as well transferable 21st century skills, such as communication, use of new information and communication technologies (ICT), collaboration, creativity, innovation, critical thinking, intercultural awareness as well as autonomy and lifelong learning. 

In relation to Commerce, Finance and Shipping, this course particularly aims at developing students’ ability to understand lectures and seminars, which are delivered by guest speakers in their Department or webinar or video speakers. The course also aims at developing students’ writing and speaking skills on topics related to the field of their studies and their competence in the management of bibliography in English.

The general objective of this course is to enable students to communicate competently at a B2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages on academic issues as well as on issues related to their future professional careers (strategy, marketing, outsourcing, markets, communication, etc.).  Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) and culture learning are done through communicative situations deriving from authentic-like communication situations students may experience in their lives during their studies and professional careers. Language competence is acquired through the use of text types, scenarios, and roles which promote the production and understanding of spoken and written language related to the topics covered.

The course is based on current learning theories, such as constructivism and social constructivism and on student-centered teaching methods.  It develops both language as well as transferable 21st century skills, such as communication, use of new information and communication technologies (ICT), collaboration, creativity, innovation, critical thinking, intercultural awareness as well as autonomy and lifelong learning. 

In relation to Commerce, Finance and Shipping, this course particularly aims at developing students’ competence in understanding lectures and seminars, which are delivered by guest speakers in their Department or webinar or video speakers. The course also aims at developing students’ writing and speaking skills on topics related to the field of their studies.

LCE 410 is a three-hour per week, 4-credit (ECTS), required degree level course that concentrates on the learning of English for Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP). LCE 410 is particularly designed to meet the needs of university students studying in the field of Finance and to develop their English language to an academic level equivalent to Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for languages level B2 – C1. The course aims to enable students to understand spoken and written English in a number of realistic contexts of the kind Commerce and Finance practitioners are likely to encounter in their daily working lives. Spoken texts include presentations, lectures, news broadcasts, discussions and interviews on finance-related issues, while written texts include texts such as e-mails, faxes, journal articles, business letters, financial reports, memos, and others.

The general objective of this course is to enable students to communicate competently at a B1-B2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for. The course aims at providing learners with opportunities to engage further with the theory relating to their area of interest through specialized material related to the genres and writing styles from their area(s) of specialization. Interactive presentations and discussions facilitate the consolidation of theory on Shipping on one hand and its application in the organization and production of oral and written texts through authentic-like tasks on the other. More specifically, learners engage in the composition of different types of written texts, used for communication in the Shipping industry such as correspondence (e.g. Emails), safety reports, chartering documentation etc. Additionally, opportunities will be offered for the development of listening comprehension and speaking skills through learners’ participation in activities such as oral presentations, promotion of services and webinars. The course is based on current learning theories, such as constructivism and social constructivism, and it aims at developing students’ language skills, as well as transferrable 21st century skills, such as communication, digital literacy, collaboration, creativity, innovation, critical thinking, intercultural awareness, autonomy and lifelong learning.