While it’s still up in the air whether the Federal Reserve will cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 or 50 basis points next week, it’s certain that the U.S. central bank will embark on its first easing cycle since 2019. In doing so, the Fed will join other major Western central banks—the European Central Bank, the Bank of England, and the Bank of Canada—all of which have already cut interest rates, some more than once. While Japan has yet to join in, and has in fact taken the first initial steps toward tightening, its benchmark interest rate of 0.25% is just a few basis points above zero.