The benchmark interest rate in the United States was last recorded at 4.50 percent. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Fed Funds Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

The U.S. federal funds effective rate underwent a dramatic reduction in early 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The rate plummeted from 1.58 percent in February 2020 to 0.65 percent in March, and further decreased to 0.05 percent in April. This sharp reduction, accompanied by the Federal Reserve's quantitative easing program, was implemented to stabilize the economy during the global health crisis. After maintaining historically low rates for nearly two years, the Federal Reserve began a series of rate hikes in early 2022, with the rate moving from 0.33 percent in April 2022 to 5.33 percent in August 2023. The rate remained unchanged for over a year, before the Federal Reserve initiated its first rate cut in nearly three years in September 2024, bringing the rate to 5.13 percent. By December 2024, the rate was cut to 4.48 percent, signaling a shift in monetary policy in the second half of 2024. In January 2025, the Federal Reserve implemented another cut, setting the rate at 4.33 percent, which remained unchanged throughout the following months. What is the federal funds effective rate? The U.S. federal funds effective rate determines the interest rate paid by depository institutions, such as banks and credit unions, that lend reserve balances to other depository institutions overnight. Changing the effective rate in times of crisis is a common way to stimulate the economy, as it has a significant impact on the whole economy, such as economic growth, employment, and inflation. Central bank policy rates The adjustment of interest rates in response to the COVID-19 pandemic was a coordinated global effort. In early 2020, central banks worldwide implemented aggressive monetary easing policies to combat the economic crisis. The U.S. Federal Reserve's dramatic reduction of its federal funds rate - from 1.58 percent in February 2020 to 0.05 percent by April - mirrored similar actions taken by central banks globally. While these low rates remained in place throughout 2021, mounting inflationary pressures led to a synchronized tightening cycle beginning in 2022, with central banks pushing rates to multi-year highs. By mid-2024, as inflation moderated across major economies, central banks began implementing their first rate cuts in several years, with the U.S. Federal Reserve, Bank of England, and European Central Bank all easing monetary policy.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Funds Target Range - Upper Limit (DFEDTARU) from 2008-12-16 to 2025-07-12 about federal, interest rate, interest, rate, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for FOMC Summary of Economic Projections for the Fed Funds Rate, Range, Low (FEDTARRL) from 2025 to 2027 about projection, federal, rate, and USA.

The inflation rate in the United States declined significantly between June 2022 and May 2025, despite rising inflationary pressures towards the end of 2024. The peak inflation rate was recorded in June 2022, at *** percent. In August 2023, the Federal Reserve's interest rate hit its highest level during the observed period, at **** percent, and remained unchanged until September 2024, when the Federal Reserve implemented its first rate cut since September 2021. By January 2025, the rate dropped to **** percent, signalling a shift in monetary policy. What is the Federal Reserve interest rate? The Federal Reserve interest rate, or the federal funds rate, is the rate at which banks and credit unions lend to and borrow from each other. It is one of the Federal Reserve's key tools for maintaining strong employment rates, stable prices, and reasonable interest rates. The rate is determined by the Federal Reserve and adjusted eight times a year, though it can be changed through emergency meetings during times of crisis. The Fed doesn't directly control the interest rate but sets a target rate. It then uses open market operations to influence rates toward this target. Ways of measuring inflation Inflation is typically measured using several methods, with the most common being the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The CPI tracks the price of a fixed basket of goods and services over time, providing a measure of the price changes consumers face. At the end of 2023, the CPI in the United States was ****** percent, up from ****** a year earlier. A more business-focused measure is the producer price index (PPI), which represents the costs of firms.

Dataset Description

This dataset contains the actual and predicted federal funds target rate for the United States from 1990 to 2023. The federal funds target rate is the interest rate at which depository institutions lend their excess reserves to each other overnight. It is set by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) and is a key tool used by the Federal Reserve to influence the economy.

The dataset includes the following five columns:

Release Date: The date on which the data was released by the Federal Reserve. Time: The time of day at which the data was released. Actual: The actual federal funds target rate. Predicted: The predicted federal funds target rate. Forecast: The forecast federal funds target rate.

Data Usage

This dataset can be used for a variety of purposes, including: - Analyzing trends in the federal funds target rate over time. - Forecasting the future path of the federal funds target rate. - Assessing the effectiveness of monetary policy. - Data Quality

The data for this dataset is of high quality. The Federal Reserve is a reputable source of data and the data is updated regularly.

Data Limitations

The data for this dataset is limited to the United States. Additionally, the data does not include information on the factors that influenced the Federal Open Market Committee's decision to set the federal funds target rate.

The U.S. federal funds rate peaked in 2023 at its highest level since the 2007-08 financial crisis, reaching 5.33 percent by December 2023. A significant shift in monetary policy occurred in the second half of 2024, with the Federal Reserve implementing regular rate cuts. By December 2024, the rate had declined to 4.48 percent. What is a central bank rate? The federal funds rate determines the cost of overnight borrowing between banks, allowing them to maintain necessary cash reserves and ensure financial system liquidity. When this rate rises, banks become more inclined to hold rather than lend money, reducing the money supply. While this decreased lending slows economic activity, it helps control inflation by limiting the circulation of money in the economy. Historic perspective The federal funds rate historically follows cyclical patterns, falling during recessions and gradually rising during economic recoveries. Some central banks, notably the European Central Bank, went beyond traditional monetary policy by implementing both aggressive asset purchases and negative interest rates.

Gold prices recover after consecutive weekly losses, trading above $3,260 an ounce as investors await the Federal Reserve's rate decision. Market dynamics shift amid global trade uncertainties.

This dataset contains text from Federal Reserve FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) meeting minutes and statements. It was collected by scraping the Federal Reserve's official website. The dataset provides insights into the central bank's monetary policy decisions and discussions, spanning a specific period of time.

Columns

• Date: The date of the FOMC meeting or statement release, provided in the YYYYMMDD format.
• Type: An indicator for the document type. A value of '0' signifies a statement, while '1' indicates meeting minutes.
• Text: The actual text content of each paragraph from the meeting minutes or statements.

Distribution

The dataset is typically provided in CSV file format. While specific total row or record counts are not detailed, the data contains a substantial volume of text from numerous documents across various dates.

Usage

This dataset is ideal for various analytical and research purposes, including: * Analysing the sentiment and tone of FOMC meeting minutes and statements over time. * Identifying key phrases and words that signify shifts in monetary policy. * Developing natural language processing (NLP) models to forecast future policy decisions based on historical data. * Investigating the relationship between FOMC meeting minutes/statements and financial market reactions.

Coverage

The dataset primarily covers the activities and discussions of the Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee, making its scope relevant to US economic and financial policy. The data spans a specific, extended period of time, though precise start and end dates are not explicitly detailed in the general description. The listing indicates a global region for the dataset's availability.

License

CCO

Who Can Use It

This dataset is particularly valuable for: * Economists and financial analysts studying central bank policy and its impact. * Data scientists and NLP practitioners looking to build models based on financial text data. * Academic researchers investigating monetary policy, economic trends, and financial markets. * Journalists reporting on central banking and economic policy.

Dataset Name Suggestions

• Federal Reserve FOMC Documents
• US Monetary Policy Texts
• FOMC Meeting & Statement Archive
• Federal Reserve Policy Transcripts
• Central Bank Monetary Data

Attributes

Original Data Source: Federal Reserve FOMC Minutes & Statements Dataset

The Volcker Shock was a period of historically high interest rates precipitated by Federal Reserve Chairperson Paul Volcker's decision to raise the central bank's key interest rate, the Fed funds effective rate, during the first three years of his term. Volcker was appointed chairperson of the Fed in August 1979 by President Jimmy Carter, as replacement for William Miller, who Carter had made his treasury secretary. Volcker was one of the most hawkish (supportive of tighter monetary policy to stem inflation) members of the Federal Reserve's committee, and quickly set about changing the course of monetary policy in the U.S. in order to quell inflation. The Volcker Shock is remembered for bringing an end to over a decade of high inflation in the United States, prompting a deep recession and high unemployment, and for spurring on debt defaults among developing countries in Latin America who had borrowed in U.S. dollars.

Monetary tightening and the recessions of the early '80s

Beginning in October 1979, Volcker's Fed tightened monetary policy by raising interest rates. This decision had the effect of depressing demand and slowing down the U.S. economy, as credit became more expensive for households and businesses. The Fed funds rate, the key overnight rate at which banks lend their excess reserves to each other, rose as high as 17.6 percent in early 1980. The rate was allowed to fall back below 10 percent following this first peak, however, due to worries that inflation was not falling fast enough, a second cycle of monetary tightening was embarked upon starting in August of 1980. The rate would reach its all-time peak in June of 1981, at 19.1 percent. The second recession sparked by these hikes was far deeper than the 1980 recession, with unemployment peaking at 10.8 percent in December 1980, the highest level since The Great Depression. This recession would drive inflation to a low point during Volcker's terms of 2.5 percent in August 1983.

The legacy of the Volcker Shock

By the end of Volcker's terms as Fed Chair, inflation was at a manageable rate of around four percent, while unemployment had fallen under six percent, as the economy grew and business confidence returned. While supporters of Volcker's actions point to these numbers as proof of the efficacy of his actions, critics have claimed that there were less harmful ways that inflation could have been brought under control. The recessions of the early 1980s are cited as accelerating deindustrialization in the U.S., as manufacturing jobs lost in 'rust belt' states such as Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania never returned during the years of recovery. The Volcker Shock was also a driving factor behind the Latin American debt crises of the 1980s, as governments in the region defaulted on debts which they had incurred in U.S. dollars. Debates about the validity of using interest rate hikes to get inflation under control have recently re-emerged due to the inflationary pressures facing the U.S. following the Coronavirus pandemic and the Federal Reserve's subsequent decision to embark on a course of monetary tightening.

Since 2013, the Federal Reserve Board has conducted the Survey of Household Economics and Decision-making (SHED), which measures the economic well-being of U.S. households and identifies potential risks to their finances. The survey includes modules on a range of topics of current relevance to financial well-being including credit access and behaviors, savings, retirement, economic fragility, and education and student loans.

We apply a discrete choice approach to model the empirical behaviour of the Federal Reserve in changing the federal funds target rate, the benchmark of short-term market interest rates in the US. Our methods allow the explanatory variables to be nonstationary as well as stationary. This feature is particularly useful in the present application as many economic fundamentals that are monitored by the Fed and are believed to affect decisions to adjust interest rate targets display some nonstationarity over time. The chosen model successfully predicts the majority of the target rate changes during the time period considered (1994-2001) and helps to explain strings of similar intervention decisions by the Fed. Based on the model-implied optimal interest rate, our findings suggest that there is a lag in the Fed's reaction to economic shocks during this period.

This dataset contains the textual data of Federal Reserve Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting statements and minutes. Its purpose is to provide a historical archive of communications from the US central bank, offering valuable context and insights into monetary policy decisions and economic outlooks over time. The dataset is regularly updated, ensuring access to the latest official communications.

Columns

• Date: This column specifies the date of the actual FOMC meeting.
• Release Date: This indicates when the statement or minutes were officially released to the public. It is important to note that minutes are typically released with approximately a three-week lag from the meeting date.
• Type: This column categorises the communication, distinguishing between a formal 'statement' and the more detailed 'minutes' of the meeting.
• Text: This contains the full textual content of each communication release, whether it is a statement or minutes.

Distribution

The dataset is typically provided in a CSV (Comma Separated Values) format. It includes communications from 2 February 2000 to 18 June 2025. The file is updated on a weekly basis with new data sourced directly from the Federal Reserve website. Based on available information, there are approximately 420 records within the specified date range. The dataset comprises roughly 52% minutes and 48% statements.

Usage

This dataset is ideal for various applications and use cases, particularly within finance, banking, and economics. It can be used for: * Natural Language Processing (NLP) tasks, such as sentiment analysis or topic modelling on central bank communications. * Economic research to analyse policy shifts, communication strategies, and their impact on financial markets. * Financial modelling and forecasting, by integrating insights from official monetary policy communications. * Academic studies on central banking, macroeconomic policy, and financial history.

Coverage

The dataset covers the period from 2 February 2000 to 18 June 2025, providing an extensive historical record of FOMC communications. While the content focuses on US monetary policy, which is inherently US-centric, the dataset's availability is global, making it accessible to users worldwide. There are no specific notes on data availability for certain demographic groups or years, as the data represents official public releases.

License

CC0

Who Can Use It

This dataset is designed for a wide range of users, including: * Financial analysts and economists seeking to understand and forecast monetary policy decisions. * Data scientists and machine learning engineers developing NLP models for financial text. * Academic researchers in economics, finance, and political science studying central bank behaviour and communication. * Government policy advisors interested in historical policy decisions and their effects. * Journalists and media professionals reporting on economic and financial news.

Dataset Name Suggestions

• Federal Reserve FOMC Communications Archive
• US Monetary Policy Statements and Minutes
• Central Bank Economic Communications
• FOMC Historical Document Collection

Attributes

Original Data Source: FOMC Meeting Statements & Minutes

Policy interest rates in the U.S. and Europe are forecasted to decrease gradually between 2024 and 2027, following exceptional increases triggered by soaring inflation between 2021 and 2023. The U.S. federal funds rate stood at **** percent at the end of 2023, the European Central Bank deposit rate at **** percent, and the Swiss National Bank policy rate at **** percent. With inflationary pressures stabilizing, policy interest rates are forecast to decrease in each observed region. The U.S. federal funds rate is expected to decrease to *** percent, the ECB refi rate to **** percent, the Bank of England bank rate to **** percent, and the Swiss National Bank policy rate to **** percent by 2025. An interesting aspect to note is the impact of these interest rate changes on various economic factors such as growth, employment, and inflation. The impact of central bank policy rates The U.S. federal funds effective rate, crucial in determining the interest rate paid by depository institutions, experienced drastic changes in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The subsequent slight changes in the effective rate reflected the efforts to stimulate the economy and manage economic factors such as inflation. Such fluctuations in the federal funds rate have had a significant impact on the overall economy. The European Central Bank's decision to cut its fixed interest rate in June 2024 for the first time since 2016 marked a significant shift in attitude towards economic conditions. The reasons behind the fluctuations in the ECB's interest rate reflect its mandate to ensure price stability and manage inflation, shedding light on the complex interplay between interest rates and economic factors. Inflation and real interest rates The relationship between inflation and interest rates is critical in understanding the actions of central banks. Central banks' efforts to manage inflation through interest rate adjustments reveal the intricate balance between economic growth and inflation. Additionally, the concept of real interest rates, adjusted for inflation, provides valuable insights into the impact of inflation on the economy.

During the financial crisis of 2007-10, the Federal Reserve (Fed) served as a global lender of last resort by establishing currency swap agreements with 14 foreign central banks, including several in East Asia. These agreements were controversial internationally because the Fed selectively established swaps with some central banks and not others, raising concerns about access to the Fed’s dollar-creating facilities. Within the U.S. Congress, the swaps were controversial because they appeared to be a new and unauthorized form of foreign aid. I analyze both the Fed’s decision to establish swap lines with certain central banks and the congressional response to these arrangements. I find that the Fed was more likely to establish swaps with central banks whose jurisdictions were important to U.S. commercial banks, suggesting that the Fed discriminated in ways that served U.S. interests. To analyze the congressional reaction to the foreign currency swaps, I examine voting in the House of Representatives on a legislative proposal known as “Audit the Fed” that would end the Fed's confidentiality about the foreign central banks it supports and reduce its political independence more broadly. I find that campaign contributions from commercial banks to representatives are negatively correlated with voting “yes” on this proposal. I also find that right-wing representatives are much more likely to support this proposal than left-wing representatives, which suggests that new congressional coalitions are forming on the role of the Fed in the (global) economy.

The Federal Reserve's balance sheet has undergone significant changes since 2007, reflecting its response to major economic crises. From a modest *** trillion U.S. dollars at the end of 2007, it ballooned to approximately **** trillion U.S. dollars by June 2025. This dramatic expansion, particularly during the 2008 financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic - both of which resulted in negative annual GDP growth in the U.S. - showcases the Fed's crucial role in stabilizing the economy through expansionary monetary policies. Impact on inflation and interest rates The Fed's expansionary measures, while aimed at stimulating economic growth, have had notable effects on inflation and interest rates. Following the quantitative easing in 2020, inflation in the United States reached ***** percent in 2022, the highest since 1991. However, by *************, inflation had declined to *** percent. Concurrently, the Federal Reserve implemented a series of interest rate hikes, with the rate peaking at **** percent in ***********, before the first rate cut since ************** occurred in **************. Financial implications for the Federal Reserve The expansion of the Fed's balance sheet and subsequent interest rate hikes have had significant financial implications. In 2023, the Fed reported a negative net income of ***** billion U.S. dollars, a stark contrast to the ***** billion U.S. dollars profit in 2022. This unprecedented shift was primarily due to rapidly rising interest rates, which caused the Fed's interest expenses to soar to over *** billion U.S. dollars in 2023. Despite this, the Fed's net interest income on securities acquired through open market operations reached a record high of ****** billion U.S. dollars in the same year.

United States - Equity Market Volatility Tracker: Lawsuit And Tort Reform Supreme Court Decisions was 2.76558 Index in April of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Equity Market Volatility Tracker: Lawsuit And Tort Reform Supreme Court Decisions reached a record high of 3.03719 in December of 2000 and a record low of 0.00000 in August of 1985. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Equity Market Volatility Tracker: Lawsuit And Tort Reform Supreme Court Decisions - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on May of 2025.

Daily Federal Funds Rate from 1928-1954 (https://fred.stlouisfed.org/categories/33951).

The federal funds rate is the interest rate at which depository institutions trade federal funds (balances held at Federal Reserve Banks) with each other overnight. When a depository institution has surplus balances in its reserve account, it lends to other banks in need of larger balances. In simpler terms, a bank with excess cash, which is often referred to as liquidity, will lend to another bank that needs to quickly raise liquidity. (1) The rate that the borrowing institution pays to the lending institution is determined between the two banks; the weighted average rate for all of these types of negotiations is called the effective federal funds rate.(2) The effective federal funds rate is essentially determined by the market but is influenced by the Federal Reserve through open market operations to reach the federal funds rate target.(2) The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meets eight times a year to determine the federal funds target rate. As previously stated, this rate influences the effective federal funds rate through open market operations or by buying and selling of government bonds (government debt).(2) More specifically, the Federal Reserve decreases liquidity by selling government bonds, thereby raising the federal funds rate because banks have less liquidity to trade with other banks. Similarly, the Federal Reserve can increase liquidity by buying government bonds, decreasing the federal funds rate because banks have excess liquidity for trade. Whether the Federal Reserve wants to buy or sell bonds depends on the state of the economy. If the FOMC believes the economy is growing too fast and inflation pressures are inconsistent with the dual mandate of the Federal Reserve, the Committee may set a higher federal funds rate target to temper economic activity. In the opposing scenario, the FOMC may set a lower federal funds rate target to spur greater economic activity. Therefore, the FOMC must observe the current state of the economy to determine the best course of monetary policy that will maximize economic growth while adhering to the dual mandate set forth by Congress. In making its monetary policy decisions, the FOMC considers a wealth of economic data, such as: trends in prices and wages, employment, consumer spending and income, business investments, and foreign exchange markets. The federal funds rate is the central interest rate in the U.S. financial market. It influences other interest rates such as the prime rate, which is the rate banks charge their customers with higher credit ratings. Additionally, the federal funds rate indirectly influences longer- term interest rates such as mortgages, loans, and savings, all of which are very important to consumer wealth and confidence.(2) References (1) Federal Reserve Bank of New York. "Federal funds." Fedpoints, August 2007. (2) Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. "Monetary Policy (https://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy.htm)".

For questions on the data, please contact the data source (https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/ContactUs/feedback.aspx?refurl=/releases/h15/%). For questions on FRED functionality, please contact us here (https://fred.stlouisfed.org/contactus/).

Gold prices hit a record high above $3,050 per ounce due to economic forecasts and Federal Reserve policy decisions, making gold an attractive investment amid rising inflation and declining US dollar and Treasury yields.

An index that can be used to gauge broad financial conditions and assess how these conditions are related to future economic growth. The index is broadly consistent with how the FRB/US model generally relates key financial variables to economic activity. The index aggregates changes in seven financial variables: the federal funds rate, the 10-year Treasury yield, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate, the triple-B corporate bond yield, the Dow Jones total stock market index, the Zillow house price index, and the nominal broad dollar index using weights implied by the FRB/US model and other models in use at the Federal Reserve Board. These models relate households' spending and businesses' investment decisions to changes in short- and long-term interest rates, house and equity prices, and the exchange value of the dollar, among other factors. These financial variables are weighted using impulse response coefficients (dynamic multipliers) that quantify the cumulative effects of unanticipated permanent changes in each financial variable on real gross domestic product (GDP) growth over the subsequent year. The resulting index is named Financial Conditions Impulse on Growth (FCI-G). One appealing feature of the FCI-G is that its movements can be used to measure whether financial conditions have tightened or loosened, to summarize how changes in financial conditions are associated with real GDP growth over the following year, or both.