Trade patterns expert Krugman wins Nobel economics prize

1. Paul Krugman enters press conference UPSOUND: Applause 2. SOUNDBITE (English) Paul Krugman, Winner of Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences: "Thank you. In case you want to know how these things work, I actually took the call stark naked as I was about to step into the shower this morning and my immediate conclusion was that was an obvious fake Swedish accent. Look, I don't think I should say very much now. It's an incredible honour, its stunning, it doesn't quite settle in. Thanks go, as always, to one's teachers." 3. Cutaway of cameras 4. SOUNDBITE (English) Paul Krugman, Winner of Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences: "Look, obviously it hasn't been enough so far, things are getting worse, and I've been writing about that a lot. Yesterday was the first day I actually felt that policy makers exceed expectations instead of falling short, that the actual decisions reached in that European summit were better than I expected and so that was favourable, and I am feeling more optimistic today than I was, let's say Thursday. It looks like policy is starting to make more sense but, you know, nobody knows, I think we have been clearly been on on the wrong track up until now and it's terrifying. I am more hopeful now than i was a few days ago." 5. Wide of press conference 6. Wide of people clapping STORYLINE: Paul Krugman, the Princeton University scholar, New York Times columnist and unabashed liberal, won the Nobel prize in economics on Monday for his analysis of how economies of scale can affect international trade patterns. Krugman has been a harsh critic of the Bush administration and the Republican Party in The New York Times, where he writes a regular column and has a blog called "Conscience of a Liberal." He has also taken the Bush administration to task over the current financial meltdown, blaming its pursuit of deregulation and unencumbered fiscal policies for the financial crisis that has threatened the global economy with recession. Perhaps better known as a columnist than an economist to the public, Krugman has also come out forcefully against John McCain during the economic meltdown, saying the Republican presidential candidate has been increasingly frightening. Krugman also has derided the Republicans as becoming "the party of stupid." Tore Ellingsen, a member of the prize committee, acknowledged that Krugman was an "opinion maker" but added that he was honoured on the merits of his economic research, not his political commentary. The 55-year-old American economist was the lone winner of the 10 million kronor (1.4 million (m) US dollars) award and the latest in a string of American researchers to be honoured. It was only the second time since 2000 that a single laureate won the prize, which is typically shared by two or three researchers. Not one to tone down his opinions, Krugman has compared the current financial crisis to the devastation of the 1930s. In contrast to his treatment of U.S. officials, Krugman has praised Britain's financial leaders for their nimble response to the credit crisis. In a column on Monday in the New York Times, Krugman wrote that British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Chancellor Alistair Darling "defined the character of the worldwide rescue effort, with other wealthy nations playing catch-up." Whereas U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson at first rejected giving financial institutions more money in return for a share of ownership, the British government "went straight to the heart of the problem ... with stunning speed," he wrote. "And whaddya know," Krugman continued, "Mr. Paulson, after arguably wasting several precious weeks, has also reversed course, and now plans to buy equity stakes rather than bad mortgage securities." You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/a8977e8f8eb44884539afe0b06d80be9 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork