CK Intelligence

Financial conditions

How easy or hard it is to borrow, lend and raise money, from the Federal Reserve System’s own measures of markets, credit and the dollar.

Chicago Fed NFCI

-0.50

Oct 9, 2026

Change on previous: +0.01 from Oct 2, 2026
Change on a year earlier: +0.02

Zero is average conditions since 1971; above zero tighter, below looser.

St. Louis Fed stress index

-0.72

Oct 9, 2026

Change on previous: −0.25 from Oct 2, 2026
Change on a year earlier: −0.23

Zero is normal; above zero more stress than usual.

GZ credit spread

0.93 pp

Sep 2026

Change on previous: +0.05 pp from Aug 2026
Change on a year earlier: +0.03 pp

Broad dollar index

121.40

Oct 16, 2026

Change on previous: −0.16 from Oct 15, 2026
Change on a year earlier: +0.73

January 2006 = 100; higher is a stronger dollar.

Financial conditions and stress

Two Federal Reserve Bank indexes that each fold many market measures (105 for the Chicago Fed’s, 18 for the St. Louis Fed’s: interest rates, spreads, volatility, leverage) into one number. Both read zero in ordinary times; their scales differ, so compare each with its own past rather than with the other.

Grey bands: U.S. recessions as dated by the NBER.

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Official statisticFederal Reserve Bank of Chicago, via FRED; Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis · as of October 16, 2026Sources & methods

Sources: Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, via FRED; Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Period covered: Jan 8, 1971 – Oct 9, 2026
Source figures as of: October 16, 2026
Geography: United States
Sector: Financial Services & Capital Markets
Seasonal adjustment: Not applicable
Transformations: The two published indexes drawn on one chart, each on its own published scale
Revisions: Recalculated on each input’s latest figures. Chicago Fed National Financial Conditions Index and St. Louis Fed Financial Stress Index: re-estimated by the publisher over its whole history with each release, so past values move a little every time; the site shows the latest estimate and does not log these moves as revisions.
Data status: Current

Research standards

Full series and downloads: Chicago Fed NFCI · St. Louis Fed stress index

Corporate credit spreads

What U.S. companies pay to borrow over the Treasury (the GZ spread), and the part of it not explained by their risk of default (the excess bond premium), from the Federal Reserve Board.

Grey bands: U.S. recessions as dated by the NBER.

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Official statisticFederal Reserve Board · as of October 16, 2026Sources & methods

Sources: Federal Reserve Board
Period covered: Jan 1973 – Sep 2026
Source figures as of: October 16, 2026
Geography: United States
Sector: Financial Services & Capital Markets
Seasonal adjustment: Not applicable
Transformations: The two published series drawn on one chart
Revisions: Recalculated on each input’s latest figures. U.S. Excess Bond Premium: re-estimated by the publisher over its whole history with each release, so past values move a little every time; the site shows the latest estimate and does not log these moves as revisions.
Data status: Current

Research standards

Full series and downloads: GZ spread · Excess bond premium

The dollar

The dollar against the currencies of the United States’ main trading partners, weighted by trade, from the Federal Reserve Board’s H.10 release.

Grey bands: U.S. recessions as dated by the NBER.

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Official statisticFederal Reserve Board · as of October 19, 2026Sources & methods

Sources: Federal Reserve Board
Period covered: Jan 2, 2006 – Oct 16, 2026
Source figures as of: October 19, 2026
Geography: United States and its trading partners
Sector: Financial Services & Capital Markets
Seasonal adjustment: Not applicable
Transformations: Daily values are drawn at each week’s last trading day; the full daily series is on the dataset’s page
Revisions: Replaced with the source’s latest figures whenever it revises them.
Data status: Current

Full method · Research standards

Full series and downloads: Broad dollar index

Policy rates of four major currency areas

The rate each central bank sets, at the end of each month, as compiled by the Bank for International Settlements. Every economy we cover is listed on the inflation and policy monitor.

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Official statisticBank for International Settlements, from central banks · as of October 16, 2026Sources & methods

Sources: Bank for International Settlements, from central banks
Period covered: Jan 1946 – Sep 2026
Source figures as of: October 16, 2026
Geography: United States; Germany; United Kingdom; Japan
Sector: Whole economy (not a single sector)
Seasonal adjustment: Not applicable
Transformations: The four published series drawn on one chart; the euro area is shown by Germany’s series, which every member shares
Revisions: Recalculated on each input’s latest figures.
Data status: Current

Research standards

Full series and downloads: United States · Euro area (ECB) · United Kingdom · Japan