Milgrom and Wilson receive the Nobel Prize in Economics



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The two American economists are honored for their improvements in auction theory and the invention of new auction formats.

This was announced by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm on Monday. They both teach in the American elite at Stanford University.

Auctions are important in setting the prices of goods and services in the economy, for example in the case of fishing rights, trading in CO2 emission rights, electricity prices, and take-off and landing rights. at airports.

“Every day they move astronomical values ​​between buyers and sellers. They have an impact on all of us, perhaps more than we think, ”said the chairman of the committee responsible for the Nobel Prize in Economics, Peter Fredriksson. Auctions influence home purchases, electricity prices and much more.

Milgrom and Wilson’s work makes it possible to design better auctions, Fredriksson said. They would have adapted auction theory to more realistic settings and with their research made it possible to invent entirely new auction formats. Companies around the world benefited from this.

Milgrom was born in Detroit in 1948, Wilson in 1937 in Geneva, Nebraska. As is usual with American award winners, news of the award reached them early in the morning due to the time difference.

I bought something on eBay

“This is very good news,” Wilson said when called by the Stockholm Academy when the announcement was made. He revealed that he had never actively participated in an auction, but later restricted: “My wife points out that we buy ski boots on Ebay. I think it was an auction. “

This means that all the Nobel prizes for this year have been announced. Those chosen in the categories of medicine, physics, chemistry, literature and peace were announced last week. This time, all the prizes are endowed with SEK 10 million (just over CHF 1 million) per category, which is SEK 1 million more than in 2019.

First two women

At that time, the three economists Esther Duflo, Abhijit Banerjee and Michael Kremer were honored for their services in the fight against global poverty. Duflo has been the second woman to date among the award winners in the economics category.

The Nobel Prize in Economics is the only one of the prizes that does not go back to the will of the inventor of dynamite and donor of the Alfred Nobel Prize. Rather, it has been donated by the Central Bank of Sweden since the late 1960s and, strictly speaking, is not considered a classic Nobel Prize. However, it will be awarded along with the other prizes on the anniversary of Nobel’s death, December 10.

This time, the solemn Nobel Prize ceremonies in Stockholm and Oslo will take place on a different and much smaller setting due to the crown pandemic. In Stockholm, where all the prizes except the Nobel Peace Prize are awarded, instead of the magnificent ceremony in the concert hall, a presentation broadcast from the City Hall is planned, in which the winners from their respective countries of origin will be connected .

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