Patch release – v2025_08 New

Global Macro Database

This 2025_08 patch brings improvements to the technical documentation and updates to the long-term interest rate data.

The data are also available via our Python, R, and Stata packages.

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46 Variables

GDP, inflation, government finance, trade, unemployment, and more.

243 Countries

Comprehensive coverage across the globe from historical to modern times.

117 Sources New

Includes 31 contemporary sources (e.g., IMF, World Bank, OECD) and 86 historical datasets.

1086 to 2030

Data spanning nearly a millennium, from 1086 to 2024 with projections up to 2030.

About the Project

This repository complements our paper, Müller, Xu, Lehbib, and Chen (2025), which introduces a panel dataset of 46 macroeconomic variables across 243 countries from historical records beginning in the year 1086 and extending to 2024 with projections up to 2030.

Features

Unparalleled Coverage: Combines data from 31 contemporary sources (e.g., IMF, World Bank, OECD) with 86 historical datasets.
Extensive Variables: GDP, inflation, government finance, trade, unemployment, interest rates, and more.
Harmonized Data: Resolves inconsistencies and splices all available data together.
Scheduled Updates: Regular releases ensure up-to-date information.
Full Transparency: All code is open-source and available on our GitHub repository.
Accessible Formats: Provided in .dta, .csv, and .xlsx, or via our Python, R, and Stata packages.

Download Data

Citation

@techreport{NBERw33714,
  title       = {The Global Macro Database: A New International Macroeconomic Dataset},
  author      = {Müller, Karsten and Xu, Chenzi and Lehbib, Mohamed and Chen, Ziliang},
  institution = {National Bureau of Economic Research},
  type        = {Working Paper},
  series      = {Working Paper Series},
  number      = {33714},
  year        = {2025},
  month       = {April},
  doi         = {10.3386/w33714},
  URL         = {http://www.nber.org/papers/w33714}
}

Acknowledgments

The development of the Global Macro Database would not have been possible without the generous funding provided by the Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) through the PYP grants (WBS A-0003319-01-00 and A-0003319-02-00), a Tier 1 grant (A-8001749-00-00), and the NUS Risk Management Institute (A-8002360-00-00). This financial support laid the foundation for the successful completion of this extensive project.

Terms of Use

The Global Macro Database (GMD) is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) . This means that the dataset is freely available for research and educational purposes but may not be used commercially.

Under this license, users are free to:

Share – copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
Adapt – remix, transform, and build upon the material

These freedoms are granted under the following conditions:

Attribution – Appropriate credit must be given to the Global Macro Database (GMD), including a link to the license and indication of any changes made. Attribution must not imply endorsement.
NonCommercial – The material may not be used for commercial purposes.
ShareAlike – If you remix or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license.

For licensing or usage inquiries, please contact us at [email protected].