São Tomé and Principe's real interest rate (%) was 5.19% in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 12.81 percentage points from 17.99% in 2015.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 5.19% | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | 8.75% | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | 17.99% | 2015 |
| Highest | 27.82% | 2001 |
| Lowest | -4.79% | 2023 |
| Average since 2016 | 6.75% | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | 27.82% | 2001 |
What the numbers say
In 2025, São Tomé and Principe's real interest rate (%) rose 5.04 percentage points on 2024 (from 0.15% to 5.19%).
Across the 23 yearly changes before that (2002 to 2024), the average change was −1.2 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 6.77 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.9 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 12.28 percentage points in 2009 and the biggest yearly fall was 18.03 percentage points in 2008. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is downward, about 1.5 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 54% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2025, São Tomé and Principe had the 37th highest value of the 73 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
Closest to São Tomé and Principe in the 2025 ranking
- Uruguay — 33rd of 73: 5.49%
- Trinidad and Tobago — 34th of 73: 5.4%
- Malaysia — 35th of 73: 5.3%
- Argentina — 37th of 73: 4.98%
- Macao SAR, China — 38th of 73: 4.97%
- Mauritius — 39th of 73: 4.89%
What this measures
An interest rate is the amount charged, expressed as a percentage of the principal over a period of time, by the owners of certain kinds of financial assets for putting the financial assets at the disposal of another institutional unit. The real interest rate is the lending interest rate adjusted for inflation as measured by the GDP deflator. The terms and conditions attached to lending rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability. This indicator is expressed as a percentage (a÷b)*100.
All 25 values
| Year | Real interest rate (%) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 5.19 |
| 2024 | 0.146 |
| 2023 | -4.79 |
| 2022 | 1.83 |
| 2021 | 12.67 |
| 2020 | 8.75 |
| 2019 | 7.01 |
| 2018 | 10.06 |
| 2017 | 14.92 |
| 2016 | 11.71 |
| 2015 |
Real interest rate (%) in nearby economies
- Angola — -0.93% (2025)
- Benin — 4.56% (2021)
- Botswana — 4.24% (2024)
- Burkina Faso — 6.13% (2021)
- Burundi — -4.95% (2025)
- Cabo Verde — 5.9% (2025)
- Comoros — 0.05% (2022)
- Congo, Dem. Rep. — 15.12% (2025)
- Côte d'Ivoire — 6.55% (2016)
- Eswatini — 9.45% (2024)
- Gambia, The — 13.08% (2025)
- Guinea-Bissau
More financial sector data for São Tomé and Principe
- DEC alternative conversion factor (LCU per US$) — US$21.69 (2025)
- Official exchange rate (LCU per US$, period average) — US$21.75 (2025)
- GDP deflator (base year varies by country) — 497.42 (2025)
- Inflation, GDP deflator (annual % growth) — 11.94% (2025)
- Inflation, GDP deflator, linked series (annual % growth) — 11.94% (2025)
- GDP deflator, linked series (base year varies by country) — 497.42 (2025)
- Domestic credit to private sector by banks (% of GDP) — 6.68% (2025)
- Broad money (current LCU) — 4.55 billion (2025)
- Broad money (% of GDP)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is São Tomé and Principe's real interest rate (%)?
- 5.19% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 2001?
- It is down 22.63 percentage points from 27.82% in 2001. The highest value was 27.82% in 2001 and the lowest -4.79% in 2023.
- How does São Tomé and Principe rank?
- 37th highest of 73 economies with data for 2025.
- Is the latest change in real interest rate (%) unusual for São Tomé and Principe?
- In 2025, São Tomé and Principe's real interest rate (%) rose 5.04 percentage points on 2024 (from 0.15% to 5.19%). Across the 23 yearly changes before that (2002 to 2024), the average change was −1.2 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 6.77 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.9 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator FR.INR.RINR, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF); World Development Indicators, World Bank (WB) 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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