Panama: Lending interest rate (%)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2022, Panama's lending interest rate (%) fell 0.03 percentage points on 2021 (from 6.94% to 6.91%).

Across the 25 yearly changes before that (1997 to 2021), the average change was −0.16 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.4 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.49 percentage points in 2001 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.1 percentage points in 2004. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2013 to 2022 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains less than 1% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

Closest to Panama in the 2022 ranking

• India — 2nd of 6: 8.57%
• Barbados — 3rd of 6: 8.05%
• Comoros — 4th of 6: 8.03%
• Israel — 6th of 6: 2.96%

What this measures

Lending rate is the bank rate that usually meets the short- and medium-term financing needs of the private sector. This rate is normally differentiated according to creditworthiness of borrowers and objectives of financing. The terms and conditions attached to these rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability.

Limitations: Countries use a variety of reporting formats, sample designs, interest compounding formulas, averaging methods, and data presentations for indices and other data series on interest rates. The IMF's Monetary and Financial Statistics Manual does not provide guidelines beyond the general recommendation that such data should reflect market prices and effective (rather than nominal) interest rates and should be representative of the financial assets and markets to be covered. For more information, please see http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/mfs/manual/index.htm.

All 27 values

Lending interest rate (%) in nearby economies

• Antigua and Barbuda — 6.39% (2025)
• Argentina — 46.02% (2025)
• Aruba — 5.8% (2023)
• Bahamas, The — 4.25% (2025)
• Barbados — 8.05% (2022)
• Belize — 8.48% (2025)
• Bolivia — 10.19% (2025)
• Brazil — 45.33% (2025)
• Chile — 4.18% (2018)
• Colombia — 14.31% (2025)
• Costa Rica — 6.88% (2025)
• Dominica

More financial sector data for Panama

• Domestic credit to private sector by banks (% of GDP) — 66.84% (2025)
• Net domestic credit (current LCU) — 66.25 billion (2025)
• Net foreign assets (current LCU) — 8.29 billion (2025)
• Monetary sector credit to private sector (% of GDP) — 73.56% (2025)
• Consumer price index (2010 = 100) — 128.14 (2025)
• Inflation, consumer prices (annual % growth) — -0.19% (2025)
• Claims on central government, etc. (% of GDP) — -1.17% (2025)
• GDP deflator (base year varies by country) — 106.74 (2025)
• DEC alternative conversion factor (LCU per US$) — US$1 (2025)
• Official exchange rate (LCU per US$, period average)

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Questions people ask

What is Panama's lending interest rate (%)?

6.91% in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1996?

It is down 4.08 percentage points from 10.99% in 1996. The highest value was 11.19% in 1998 and the lowest 6.5% in 2015.

Is the latest change in lending interest rate (%) unusual for Panama?

In 2022, Panama's lending interest rate (%) fell 0.03 percentage points on 2021 (from 6.94% to 6.91%). Across the 25 yearly changes before that (1997 to 2021), the average change was −0.16 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.4 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator FR.INR.LEND, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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