Global Overview
All tracked central banks, side by side.
Over the past 3 months: 5 hiked, 0 cut, and 3 held steady across the 8 banks tracked here.
The situation, AI-generated and grounded in the real numbers above and the sources below
Reading recent coverage…
Fed
4%
+25bp · 1 move
As of 2026-09-21
ECB
2.5%
+25bp · 1 move
As of 2026-09-21
BoE
3.75%
0bp
As of 2026-09-18
BoJ
0.977%
+14bp · 2 moves
As of 2026-08-01
PBoC
1.54%
+3bp · 2 moves
As of 2026-07-01
SNB
-0.27%
+10bp · 3 moves
As of 2026-08-01
RBA
4.35%
0bp · 1 move
As of 2026-08-31
BoC
2.25%
0bp
As of 2026-09-18
Real coverage from the past 3 months
- Fed raises interest rates to 3.75%-4.00% in first rate hike in three years, with more expected
U.S. Bank · 2026-09-16
- The Policy Muddle Snaring the World’s Big Central Banks
Bloomberg.com · 2026-09-20
- Gold prices fall amid Middle East tensions and anticipation of central bank interest rate decisions
صوت الإمارات · 2026-09-21
- Federal Funds Rate History 1990 to 2026
forbes.com · 2026-09-16
Central Bank Room
People's Bank of China
China
Rates
PBoC does not publish one single official daily policy rate the way the Fed or ECB do, so this is the closest free market-rate proxy, not an official figure.
1.54%
3-month interbank rate: proxy (the PBoC does not publish one single daily policy rate)
As of 2026-07-01
Monthly
Resolution
+3bp
Last move
2026-07-01
Rate decisions
2026-07-01
1.54% (+3bp)
3bp hike: moves like this are typically used to cool inflation or an overheating economy by making borrowing more expensive.
2026-05-01
1.51% (-13bp)
13bp cut: moves like this are typically used to support a slowing economy by making borrowing and spending cheaper.
2026-04-01
1.64% (-6bp)
6bp cut: moves like this are typically used to support a slowing economy by making borrowing and spending cheaper.
2026-03-01
1.7% (-1bp)
1bp cut: moves like this are typically used to support a slowing economy by making borrowing and spending cheaper.
2026-02-01
1.71% (-4bp)
4bp cut: moves like this are typically used to support a slowing economy by making borrowing and spending cheaper.
2026-01-01
1.75% (+6bp)
6bp hike: moves like this are typically used to cool inflation or an overheating economy by making borrowing more expensive.
The one-line note next to each move is a general description of what that type of decision typically does, not this bank's own stated reason for that specific move. "Explain more" generates a short AI summary grounded only in the real, dated news articles listed as sources beneath it (never the bank's official statement, and it may say there is not enough coverage to explain confidently).
Monetary & budgetary policy, explained
What a policy rate does
A policy rate (like the one People's Bank of China sets) is the interest rate a central bank charges or pays on very short-term lending to commercial banks. Every other interest rate in the economy, mortgages, savings accounts, business loans, credit cards, is priced off that base rate, so moving it is the main lever a central bank has to influence the whole economy.
Hikes vs. cuts
Raising the rate ("hiking") makes borrowing more expensive and saving more attractive, which tends to slow spending and investment, used to cool inflation or an overheating economy. Cutting the rate does the opposite: cheaper borrowing encourages spending and investment, used to support a slowing economy or fight deflation/unemployment. Changes typically take months to fully feed through. This is often called the "transmission mechanism."
Monetary policy vs. budgetary (fiscal) policy
Monetary policy (interest rates and money supply) is set by the central bank, which is deliberately kept independent from elected government in most major economies. Budgetary (fiscal) policy (government spending and taxation) is set by the government itself. The two can reinforce each other (both loosening at once to boost growth) or work against each other (a government spending more while its central bank raises rates to fight the inflation that spending causes). Watching both together usually explains the economy better than either alone.
What tends to move when the rate moves
Currency: higher rates often attract foreign capital seeking yield, which can strengthen the currency (and vice versa). Bonds: bond prices generally move opposite to rate expectations. Equities: higher rates raise the discount rate used to value future company earnings, which tends to weigh on stock valuations, especially for growth companies. None of this is guaranteed or immediate. It is the general direction markets expect, not a formula.
Markets & the economy
China's stock market next to the policy rate. Pick a period.
Left axis: policy rate (%). Right axis: Chinese large-caps (≈ FTSE China 50), tracked via iShares China Large-Cap ETF (FXI). The two lines are shown side by side for comparison. No correlation is implied; judge for yourself.
What 1.54% actually does to real money
If you are borrowing
Say you owe ¥10,000 on a variable-rate loan or card priced at roughly People's Bank of China's policy rate plus a typical spread. At today's 1.54%, that is about ¥954/year in interest. A further 1-point rate rise would push that to roughly ¥1,054/year, an extra ¥100 on just this one balance.
If you are saving
The same ¥10,000, this time sitting in a savings account, earns roughly ¥92/yearat today's rate (banks typically pass through less than the full policy rate). A 1-point rise would take that to about ¥152/year, savers gain from the same move that costs borrowers.
Both boxes are worked illustrations on a stated ¥10,000 balance and a typical spread over the policy rate, not a specific bank's actual advertised rate. The point is the mechanism and direction, not a quote you could take to a branch.
The one thing most people get backwards
Two 2025 US surveys (Rocket Mortgage and Veterans United) found that roughly 6 in 10 people believe the central bank directly sets mortgage rates.It does not. Credit cards, overdrafts, and variable-rate loans, like the borrowing example above, move close to 1:1 with the policy rate, often within weeks, because they are priced directly off it. Fixed mortgage rates are different: they track longer-term bond yields and where investors expect rates to go over the next 10-30 years, not today's policy rate itself, which is why mortgage rates can sit still, or even move the opposite way, right after a policy rate change.
Why the chart above will not show an instant reaction
Economist Milton Friedman's original finding on this (since re-tested many times, including by the St. Louis Fed) is that the gap between a policy move and its full effect on the real economy has historically ranged from 4 to 29 months, with no reliable way to know in advance where in that range a given move will land. That is exactly why a chart of two lines moving together (or not) over a short window can be misleading either way. A real effect can still be working its way through the economy well after the line on the chart looks flat.
The situation over the past year: AI-generated, grounded in the real index move and sources below
Reading recent coverage…
Real coverage from the past year
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In the news
- China keeps benchmark lending rates unchanged for 16th month in September
Reuters · 2026-09-20
- What does the rate increase by the US Fed mean for the Chinese yuan?
South China Morning Post · 2026-09-17
- Confirmed: PBOC leaves Loan Prime Rates unchanged in September
FXStreet · 2026-09-21
- Yuan Hits Strongest Level Since June 2022 as PBOC Tolerates Gains Ahead of US-China Summit
finance.biggo.com · 2026-09-21
- China set to keep loan rates steady for 16th consecutive month in September
Reuters · 2026-09-18
- PBOC Adviser Sees Potential Rate Cut But Calls for Targeted Aid
Bloomberg.com · 2026-06-24
Commentary
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