Credit-easing steps by central banks, at a glance

Interest rates: Has kept its benchmark rate at a record low of 0.5 percent since 2009.

Bond buying: Announced this summer a plan to buy more government bonds from financial institutions, hoping the banks will use the extra cash to lend to businesses and households.

— RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Interest rates: In December, Australia's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point to its lowest level since the global financial crisis erupted five years ago. The Reserve Bank of Australia's decision to cut the rate to 3 percent was its fourth rate cut of 2012.