- Control of Growth & Development. Hormones are chemical messengers produced by glands in the endocrine system. Endocrine tissues are specialised to produce such hormones, which have genes switched on according the the hormones they were designed to produce.
There are actually three rates in the U.S. that drive virtually everything else, from bond returns to credit card interest rates. Of these, the Federal Reserve actually controls only two (the Federal Funds Rate and the Discount Rate). The third rate, called the Prime Rate, is the rate that most people falsely believe the Fed changes. In truth, this is the one rate the Fed has no direct control over.
However, the Fed's. decisions on interest rates can also have an impact. on the market value of your bonds. The Fed takes an active role in trying to prevent. inflation from spiraling out of control. When the Fed. gets concerned that the rate of inflation is rising, it. may decide to raise interest rates.