ANALYSTS VIEW: Other economists on Nobel winner Krugman

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - U.S. economist Paul Krugman, a fierce critic of the Bush administration for policies that he argues led to the current financial crisis, won the 2008 Nobel prize for economics on Monday.

The Nobel committee said the award was for Krugman's work that helps explain why some countries dominate international trade.

A well-known economist who writes columns for the New York Times, Krugman has long featured among the favorites to win a Nobel. He is a professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University in the United States.

Following are comments from economists.

MARK GERTLER, ECONOMICS PROFESSOR, NEW YORK UNIVERSITY

"It's a terrific prize, it's well deserved, he's had a huge influence on the field."

"It's rarely the case that someone gets the prize who's well known to the public at large, and this is that kind of a case ... he has a pretty significant forum already and this is only going to raise his profile further."

"He's someone who bridges the gap. He has a deep understanding of academic, theoretical economics and he has an appreciation of the world ... that's why he's been so successful as a columnist."

KENNETH ROGOFF, ECONOMIST, HARVARD UNIVERSITY

"He is someone who is simply a consensus Nobel prize winner. His research is beautiful and relevant and applied."

"He really expanded the tool kit on international trade. ... He was really able to paint new vistas of how trade works."

"Some mathematically modeling is very obscure but he has a real gift for very clean elegant models where the points are very crisp and forceful."

No particular area of economic activity necessarily reflects Krugman's contributions to economics, Rogoff said. "The theory does yield qualifications to the idea that free trade is always best... but those qualifications are always very limited."

On his writings as a columnist: "Whether you agree with him or disagree with him he's a very elegant writer and that same crispness and elegance also comes through when he writes using math, and it's pretty unusual to be able to do both."

DAVID DIETZE, CHIEF INVESTMENT STRATEGIST, POINT VIEW

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