Central bank

How it is used

Examples are the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (CBRT), the US Federal Reserve (the Fed), the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of England. In the news, the central bank raises or cuts rates, intervenes in currency markets and publishes statements and inflation reports.

Example sentences

1. The central bank said it would keep policy tight until inflation falls clearly.

2. In many countries the central bank is legally independent and sets interest rates without direct instructions from the government.

Common collocations

• central bank independence
• the central bank governor
• central bank reserves
• central bank decision

Related terms

• monetary policyThe actions a central bank takes to influence interest rates, the money supply and credit in order to control inflation and support the economy.
• interest rateThe price of borrowing money, shown as a yearly percentage of the amount borrowed; for savers, it is the return they earn on deposits.
• policy rateThe main interest rate set by a central bank, which guides the rates that banks charge each other, businesses and households.
• inflation targetThe rate of inflation that a central bank officially aims to achieve over the medium term, such as 2% a year.
• money supplyThe total amount of money circulating in an economy, including cash and bank deposits, measured with categories such as M1 and M2.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

• central bank · Finance & Banking

More terms: Central Banks and Interest Rates

• rate hike
• rate cut
• quantitative easing
• hawkish
• dovish
• credit
• real interest rate
• tightening
• easing
• hold rates
• monetary policy committee
• foreign exchange reserves