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Topic
Interest rates
19 guides in Finabase Learn
- Central banks around the world: Fed, ECB, BOJ, BoE and more The policy rates and mandates of the Fed, ECB, Bank of Japan, Bank of England, Bank of Canada and PBOC, and how gaps between them move currencies like USD/JPY.
- Compound Interest Interest earned on both the original principal and on interest already earned, so growth accelerates over time.
- Coupon The annual interest a bond pays, stated as a percentage of its face value; a 5% coupon on a $1,000 bond pays $50 a year.
- Credit Spread The extra yield a corporate or other risky bond pays over a Treasury of similar maturity, reflecting perceived credit risk.
- Discount Rate The rate used to convert future cash flows to present value; also the rate the Fed charges banks at its discount window.
- Dot Plot The Fed chart showing where each FOMC participant expects the federal funds rate to be at the end of coming years.
- Duration A measure of a bond's price sensitivity to interest rates: a duration of 7 means about a 7% price drop for a one-point rise in yields.
- Federal funds rate: target range, IORB and the effective rate What the fed funds rate is, how the Fed keeps it inside a 25 bp target range with IORB, reverse repos and standing repos, and how it is measured each day.
- Fiscal vs monetary policy: who controls which lever How fiscal policy (taxes, spending, borrowing) and monetary policy (the Fed’s rates and balance sheet) differ, how they interact, and what 2020–2026 shows.
- FOMC meetings: schedule, statement, minutes and how to read them What happens at the Fed’s eight yearly FOMC meetings, the 2:00 p.m. statement, press conference and minutes, and every rate step from 2008 to 2026.
- How interest rates affect stocks: discount rates and equity duration Why higher interest rates tend to lower stock prices, why growth stocks feel it most, and what yields, QQQ, SPY and value stocks did from 2021 to 2026.
- How the economy affects stocks: growth, inflation, jobs and rates How GDP, inflation, jobs and interest rates feed into company earnings and discount rates, why stocks move before the economy does, and where the link breaks.
- REITs explained: how real estate investment trusts work What a REIT is, the IRS tests and 90% payout rule behind it, equity vs mortgage REITs, FFO, why REITs react to interest rates, and how VNQ compared with the S&P 500.
- The 10-year Treasury yield: why it matters and what drives it Why the 10-year Treasury yield is the benchmark rate, its history since 1953, how it splits into real yield and breakeven inflation, and how it reaches mortgages.
- The 2022 bear market: inflation, Fed hikes and falling bonds Why stocks and bonds fell together in 2022, how the Fed’s fastest hikes in decades drove a 25% S&P 500 decline, and what SPY, QQQ and TLT data show.
- The Fed dot plot: how to read the FOMC’s rate projections What each dot in the Fed’s dot plot means, how the median and central tendency are built, what the September 2026 projections showed, and why dots are not promises.
- The Federal Reserve: structure, mandate and policy tools How the Fed is organized, what its dual mandate means, the tools it uses to set interest rates, and seven decades of the fed funds rate in one chart.
- The yield curve: shapes, slopes and what each end tells you How the Treasury yield curve is built, why it slopes up, flattens or inverts, what the short and long ends reflect, and how to read it with real 1960–2026 data.
- What moves stock prices? Earnings, rates, flows, news and sentiment The forces that set a stock price, from earnings and expectations to interest rates, fund flows, news and mood, with real 2025–2026 examples from Finabase data.
Educational content, not investment advice. Finabase Learn explains how markets and tools work. It does not recommend any security or strategy, and examples are for illustration only. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Rules and figures are for the United States unless stated and can change — check the cited source before you act.