US Catholic quotes Eric LeCompte on the use of rising interest rates to combat inflation, and its implications for debt-ridden countries. Read an excerpt below, and click here for the full article.

We can’t fight inflation at the expense of the poor

By Kevin Clarke

In this time of converging crises, rising interest rates “mean developing countries have higher debt payments just when they need to invest more to protect their people,” Eric LeCompte, director of Jubilee USA Network, reminded policymakers as G20 finance ministers convened in Bali, Indonesia in July. “Countries need debt relief, not more debt.”

Raising interest rates to combat inflation can only be one aspect of a comprehensive approach to stabilizing the global economic order. A human factor, the church’s preferential option for the poor, must be part of the calculus among economists in Washington, Geneva, Brussels, and New York.

 

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