For the past few months, the US economy has been poised in a precarious position: core inflation stubbornly persistent at a smidge above 3% YoY (above the Fed’s target of 2%), job market showing signs of weakness, and unemployment jumping to 4.3% in July (a three-year high).

On Sept. 18, Indonesia’s Central Bank (Bank Indonesia) announced a decrease in their interest rate from 25 basis points (0.25%) to 6%, in a move that came as a surprise to most experts.

In early December, The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) lifted interest rates for the eighth consecutive month, taking its benchmark to 3.1%.