Hall and Woodford Share 2026 Economics Prize

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced on October 12 that Robert E. Hall and Michael Woodford jointly received the 2026 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences, an award worth 12 million Swedish kronor to be shared equally. The Academy’s announcement described the prize as recognizing work on prerequisites for sustained growth through technological progress. The stated rationale differs across the supplied accounts. The Academy’s announcement says Hall and Woodford demonstrated how economic models could be reconstructed to revitalize stabilization policy, grounding them in the decisions of households and businesses rather than only statistical links among broad economic measures. Other accounts describe the award as recognizing the microeconomic foundations of macroeconomic stabilization. John Hassler, chair of the Committee for the Prize in Economic Sciences, said their work provides a theoretical foundation for models used by governments and central banks and helps them address economic shocks. The models examine how individual choices affect the wider economy.