International Trade Relations

Participants in this master’s degree will receive advanced, multidisciplinary training in the field of international economic relations involving states, international bodies and enterprises. The legal and economic aspects of the internationalisation of trade relations will be the core (even if not the exclusive object) of this academic programme.

In terms of the economic aspect of the course, students will learn the basic features of various forms of business strategy, as well as general issues regarding the local dimensions of productive activity.

As for the legal patterns involved in the internationalization of commercial relations, students will gain a deeper understanding and comparative knowledge of the principles and rules that shape the functioning of trade (with particular regard to the OMC system and the internal European market). This will include the fundamental economic freedoms within the internal European market framework. Students will broaden their understanding of legal devices whose purpose is to protect investments and enable commercial activities to function in foreign markets. 

In view of the above, the educational pathway includes three different areas of knowledge relating to the internationalisation of trade relations. These are, firstly, economic issues; then legal aspects, and finally linguistic, historical and political topics.

Specifically, the knowledge and practical skills acquired in the economic aspects of internationalisation will consist of:

• business strategies in general;
• factors driving the location of economic activities and the development of enterprises, with particular regard to their internationalisation;
• local development policies, grounded in public and private economic initiatives, which may promote the internationalisation of a given area, and enhance the degree of competitiveness of several economic fields.

The legal technicalities of internationalisation dealt with include:

• the interpretation and enforcement of legal provisions governing commercial relations;
• the assessment and implementation of those legal tools necessary for the internationalisation of firms;
• The evaluation, selection and development of strategies and policies, necessary and opportune from a legal point of view, to promote and sustain the internationalisation of public, national or local entities.
• Last but not least, as far as the linguistic, historical, and political science areas are concerned, attention will be paid to financial and economic issues of the global market, the main events of modern history in the context of global economic development, and the political system, of actors and processes involved in world trade relations.

This academic program aims to train experts in planning, research, and assessment of activities such as:

• the development of strategies devoted to the location and commercial growth of enterprises in the framework of internationalisation;
• the development of strategies of local economic development linked to private and public initiatives at an international level.