Brazil Remains at Top of Real Interest Rate Ranking After Selic Rate Is Held Steady - 05/11/2026 - Business - Folha de S.Paulo

Brazil retained first place in the global ranking of real interest rates (adjusted for inflation) after the Central Bank's Monetary Policy Committee (Copom) kept the Selic benchmark interest rate at 13.75% per year on Wednesday (4). Brazil's real interest rate rose from 8.45% per year in the September survey to 9.49%, according to a ranking compiled by Portal MoneYou and Lev Intelligence.

The country has higher real interest rates than Turkey (7.77%), Argentina (6.80%), Russia (6.57%) and Colombia (4.05%), to name some of the countries highlighted in the survey, which covers 40 economies and has an average rate of 1.28% per year. The real interest rate is calculated by combining projected inflation for the next 12 months (4.99%, according to the Central Bank's Focus report) with the market interest rate for a 12-month maturity.

In nominal terms, Brazil's rate ranks fourth, below Turkey (36%), Argentina (29%) and Russia (14%), but above Colombia (12.25%), South Africa (7.25%) and Mexico (6.50%). The average for the 40 countries is 5.51% per year.

In a broader sample of 164 countries, 86% kept interest rates unchanged at their central banks' latest meetings, 9.1% raised rates and 4.9% cut them.