Chart: The Downward Spiral in Interest Rates
As interest rates continue their historic spiral downwards, the world's central banks are running out of conventional tools to settle markets.
www.visualcapitalist.com
Global Rate Slashing
Since only the beginning of March, the world’s central banks have cut interest rates on 37 separate occasions.
Here’s a look at cumulative interest rate cuts by some of the world’s most important central banks, from January 1, 2020 until today:
US -150 to 0.00%
Saudi Arabia -125 to 1.00%
Canada -100 to 0.75%
UK -50 to 0.25%
Brazil -25 to 4.25%
Australia -25 to 0.5%
China -10 to 4.05%
Japan 0 to 0.10%
European 0 to 0.00%
Switzerland 0 to -0.75%
Going into the year, rates in developed economies were already between 0% and 2%.
Despite not having much room to work with, banks have slashed rates where they can — and now out of major developed economies, Canada has the “highest” interest rate at just 0.75%.
Helicopters on the Horizon
With central banks running out of ammo for the use of traditional measures, the conversation is quickly shifting to unconventional measures such as “helicopter money” and NIRP.
Life is already surreal as societal measures to defend against the spread of COVID-19 unfold; pretty soon, monetary measures taken around the globe may seem just as bizarre.
Put another way, unless something changes fast and miraculously, we could be moving into an unprecedented monetary environment where up is down, and down is up. At that point, it’s anybody’s guess as to how things will shake out going forward.
(Please, unless you have clue about the subject keep your two-cents to yourself and don't waste everyone's time by writing nonsense)
In the US, inflation in 2020 is 2.73%. So if inflation is factored in then basically the US interest rate is -2.73%.