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.

Key information about United States Short Term Interest Rate

• United States Short Term Interest Rate: Month End: Treasury Bills: 3 Months was reported at 4.20 % pa in Feb 2025, compared with 4.20 % pa in the previous month.
• US Short Term Interest Rate data is updated monthly, available from Jan 1954 to Feb 2025.
• The data reached an all-time high of 15.52 % pa in Aug 1981 and a record low of -0.01 % pa in Sep 2015.
• Short Term Interest Rate is reported by reported by Federal Reserve Board.

• In the latest reports, US Treasury Notes Yield: Constant Maturity: Nominal: 10 Years was reported at 4.45 % pa in Feb 2025.
• The cash rate (Policy Rate: Month End: Effective Federal Funds Rate) was set at 4.33 % pa in Feb 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Large Bank Consumer Mortgage Originations: Average Interest Rate at Origination by LTV: 30-Year Fixed Rate Mortgage: 66-79 Loan-to-Value (RCMFLRIGIRAPCTF30LTV66T79) from Q3 2012 to Q1 2025 about origination, FR Y-14M, 30-year, large, mortgage, fixed, average, loans, consumer, interest rate, banks, depository institutions, interest, rate, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Interest Rates: 3-Month or 90-Day Rates and Yields: Certificates of Deposit: Total for Japan (IR3TCD01JPQ156N) from Q3 1979 to Q1 2022 about CD, 3-month, Japan, yield, interest rate, interest, and rate.

TR: Deposit Interest Rate data was reported at 15.288 % pa in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 14.610 % pa for 2016. TR: Deposit Interest Rate data is updated yearly, averaging 40.583 % pa from Dec 1979 (Median) to 2017, with 39 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 87.791 % pa in 1994 and a record low of 7.333 % pa in 1979. TR: Deposit Interest Rate data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Turkey – Table TR.World Bank.WDI: Interest Rates. Deposit interest rate is the rate paid by commercial or similar banks for demand, time, or savings deposits. The terms and conditions attached to these rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability.; ; International Monetary Fund, International Financial Statistics and data files.; ;

Graph and download economic data for Interest Rates: 3-Month or 90-Day Rates and Yields: Interbank Rates: Total for Norway (IR3TIB01NOM156N) from Jan 1979 to Aug 2025 about Norway, interbank, 3-month, yield, interest rate, interest, and rate.

Interbank Rate in Argentina increased to 68.97 percent in August from 43.21 percent in July of 2025. This dataset provides - Argentina up to 15 Days Interbank Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Uruguay UY: Real Interest Rate data was reported at 9.429 % pa in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 8.221 % pa for 2016. Uruguay UY: Real Interest Rate data is updated yearly, averaging 15.392 % pa from Dec 1977 (Median) to 2017, with 41 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 93.915 % pa in 2002 and a record low of -7.617 % pa in 1979. Uruguay UY: Real Interest Rate data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Uruguay – Table UY.World Bank.WDI: Interest Rates. Real interest rate is the lending interest rate adjusted for inflation as measured by the GDP deflator. The terms and conditions attached to lending rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability.; ; International Monetary Fund, International Financial Statistics and data files using World Bank data on the GDP deflator.; ;

Bank Lending Rate in Israel increased to 5.88 percent in February from 5.67 percent in January of 2023. This dataset provides - Israel Bank Prime Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Syria SY: Lending Interest Rate data was reported at 9.878 % pa in 2010. This records a decrease from the previous number of 10.163 % pa for 2009. Syria SY: Lending Interest Rate data is updated yearly, averaging 9.000 % pa from Dec 1979 (Median) to 2010, with 32 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 10.167 % pa in 2008 and a record low of 7.500 % pa in 2004. Syria SY: Lending Interest Rate data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Syrian Arab Republic – Table SY.World Bank.WDI: Interest Rates. Lending rate is the bank rate that usually meets the short- and medium-term financing needs of the private sector. This rate is normally differentiated according to creditworthiness of borrowers and objectives of financing. The terms and conditions attached to these rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability.; ; International Monetary Fund, International Financial Statistics and data files.; ;

Official interest, rates short - term deposits unsecured and call money

1957 - 2001, January 1957- December 2003 Changed on January 13 2004. Frequency: Discontinued.

Qatar: Interest rates on bank credit to the private sector: The latest value from 2024 is 6.18 percent, a decline from 6.45 percent in 2023. In comparison, the world average is 11.26 percent, based on data from 75 countries. Historically, the average for Qatar from 1979 to 2024 is 7.24 percent. The minimum value, 3.85 percent, was reached in 2021 while the maximum of 10.19 percent was recorded in 1995.

This collection consists of a massive array of economic time series data pertaining to the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and France, measuring production, construction, prices, income, employment, inventories, sales, interest rates, money supply, and a variety of other factors. These data were collected by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) during the past five decades, and constitute a research resource of major importance to economists as well as political scientists, sociologists, historians and other scholars. Under a grant from the National Science Foundation, the Consortium and the National Bureau of Economic Research converted this collection (which existed heretofore only on handwritten sheets stored in New York) into fully accessible, readily usable, and completely documented machine-readable form. The NBER collection--now containing an estimated 1.6 million entries--is divided into 16 major categories: I. Production of Commodities II. Construction III. Transportation and Public Utilities IV. Prices V. Stocks of Commodities VI. Distribution of Commodities VII. Foreign Trade VIII. Income and Employment IX. Financial Status of Business X. Savings and Investment XI. Security Markets XII. Volume of Transactions XIII. Interest Rates XIV. Money and Banking XV. Government Finance XVI. Indexes of Leading, Coincident and Lagging Indicators Data from all categories are currently available from ICPSR as twenty-four OSIRIS datasets. The economic variables of the datasets are usually observations on the entire nation or large subsets of the nation. Frequently, however, and especially in the United States, separate regional and metropolitan data are included in other variables. This makes cross-sectional analysis possible in many cases. The time span of variables in these files may be as short as one year or as long as 160 years. Chronologically, most data fall within the first half of the twentieth century. Many series, however, extend into the 19th century, and a few reach into the 18th. The oldest series, covering brick production in England and Wales, begins in 1785, and the most recent United States data extend to 1968. Data in the NBER collected were reported at annual, quarterly, or monthly intervals. Most of the data are monthly observations, and practically all monthly variables contain annual values as well. Infrequently, a variable may contain monthly, quarterly, and annual data. Next to monthly series in number are annual series, which contain only annual values. Quarterly series, of which there are relatively few, contain, like the monthly series, implied annual values. Most of the quarterly and monthly data is presented in both original and seasonally-adjusted form. Additional information on the content and characteristics of each series is available from the Center for International Business Cycle Research, Rutgers University, Newark, N.J. 07102.

Graph and download economic data for Interest Rates: 3-Month or 90-Day Rates and Yields: Interbank Rates: Total for Italy (IR3TIB01ITA156N) from 1979 to 2024 about Italy, interbank, 3-month, yield, interest rate, interest, and rate.

Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.The 5% Sample Survey of Building Society Mortgage Completions (BSM) has been in existence since 1965. The Archive holds data from 1974. Monthly returns, giving detailed information on a nominal 5% sample of all mortgage completions, have been submitted on a voluntary basis by most building societies to the Department of Environment who process the data on a quarterly basis. The survey results have served as the offical source of statistics on the owner-occupied housing market, providing a wealth of information on mortgage advances, dwelling prices and the characteristics of borrowers and properties. An increased share of the mortgage market being accounted for by other lenders and a widening range of mortgage products during the 1980s have necessitated change, leading to the BSM being succeeded by the Survey of Mortgage Lenders (SML) in 1992 (see GN: 33254). An important consideration for users of the data is that the SML figures allow continuity with the BSM survey results to be maintained for a reasonable period. Main Topics: Building Society code, date mortgage completed, whether dwelling is wholly or partly occupied by borrower. Mortgage amount, whether solely for purchase of property, period of mortgage, gross rate of interest, repayment method. Purchase price and whether discounted in any way. Location of dwelling, whether new, age of dwelling, type, number of habitable rooms, whether garage, rateable value. Number and sex of borrowers, age of main borrower, basic income, other income, total income, whether applicant previously owner occupier, previous tenure, whether main borrower nominated by LA under support lending scheme. Building Societies are divided into four strata according to the size of their assets. All the largest societies are asked to complete questionnaires on a sample of 5 per cent of their new mortgage advances. Mortgages are included if their reference numbers end in specified digits chosen so that every twentieth mortgage is selected. Societies in the next stratum are arranged in order of size of assets and alternate societies chosen each of which are asked to complete questionnaires on 10 per cent of their mortgages. In the next stratum 20 per cent of the mortgages of every fourth society are obtained. The smallest societies are completely excluded.

View yearly updates and historical trends for Indonesia Deposit Interest Rate. Source: World Bank. Track economic data with YCharts analytics.

Kuwait: Interest rates on bank credit to the private sector: The latest value from 2024 is 5.17 percent, an increase from 4.93 percent in 2023. In comparison, the world average is 11.26 percent, based on data from 75 countries. Historically, the average for Kuwait from 1979 to 2024 is 6.85 percent. The minimum value, 3.71 percent, was reached in 2021 while the maximum of 9.39 percent was recorded in 1982.

ABSTRACT This research analyzes the Brazilian structural economic crisis throughout the 1970s and 1980s and the political responses of the Authoritarian National Developmentalism (1964-1985). Firstly, the study highlights the nature of the international oil crises of 1973 and 1979, showing an unexpected rise in interest rates by the US Central Bank and the tightening of external credit after 1979. Rising interest rates meant the end of liquidity in the international credit finance market and the beginning of a drastically recessive policy in Brazil. These factors contributed to the erosion of the growth model based on external debt, a model reflected in two main paradigms: the “economic miracle” (1968-1973) marked by high GDP growth rates; and the II National Development Plan (II PND) (1974-1979), focused on deepening the import substitution industrialization (ISI). The collapse of authoritarianism led to hyperinflation, external indebtedness, and the state’s fiscal crisis, exposing the hegemony of rentier, nonproductive financial capitalism. The second part of the article investigates the negative externalities of the structural economic crisis at the social level, such as concentration, centralization, and closing of the decision-making process, hindering workers’ participation; the intensification of union mobilizations for wage recomposition; the spread of unemployment/underemployment in metropolitan regions; the wage squeeze; the increase in unhealthy labor relations and, therefore, the thinning of the social fabric.

Global interest rate, all instruments, Renminbi, on All exchanges, outstanding - notional amounts, Quarterly

Mexico - Debt sec, interest rate-linked, issued by central bank, in all markets at all original maturities denominated in all currencies at nominal value stocks