Robert Hall and Michael Woodford win 2026 Nobel Prize in Economics

Robert Hall and Michael Woodford have won the 2026 Nobel Prize in Economics for research on macroeconomic stabilisation.

The award recognises models that help central banks and governments moderate business cycles, prolonged downturns and excessive inflation. The prize is worth 12 million Swedish kronor.

Research used in economic policy

Hall, from Stanford University, and Woodford, from Columbia University, developed foundations for New Keynesian models. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said the models explain and quantify how stabilisation policy affects business cycles and are used by central banks and finance ministries worldwide.

The academy described their work as a “paradigm shift” in stabilisation policy. Woodford is also one of the architects of modern forward guidance, through which central banks influence the economy by shaping inflation expectations.

Other business developments

The European Union plans to limit imports of hybrid electric vehicles from China to 350,000 cars a year. The euro meanwhile fell to a 16-month low against sterling, which reached €1.1836 amid expectations that the Bank of England will raise rates on 5 November.

HMV plans to leave its flagship Oxford Street store in London in March after the landlord proposed doubling the rent. The retailer, which has 114 HMV stores and six Fopp sites in the UK, said it was seeking an alternative location.