Rankings / Candidate
Elhanan Helpman
Harvard University · Trade
Photo: Elhanan Helpman, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Currently #11, tier Field, score 14.3, named by 1 source.Score history: 100.0, 25.0, 14.3
The work. With Grossman, the modern theory of trade under increasing returns, innovation-driven endogenous growth, and the political economy of protection in "Protection for Sale."
The case for. Grossman and Helpman is the standard toolkit for trade, growth, and lobbying. Krugman's 2008 prize cited work Helpman coauthored.
The case against. Krugman took the trade prize and Aghion and Howitt took the innovation-growth prize in 2025. The room he would enter has been cleared out twice.
The KmikeyM angle. "Protection for Sale" models a government auctioning policy to lobbies. KmikeyM sells governance by the share, which is the same auction with the price posted.
What the sources say
- Clarivate alumni (prior years) named Elhanan Helpman: named in 2007: for contributions on international trade, particularly on the relationship between economic growth and trade (heat 100) Preseason: the Clarivate alumni pool