<Li> A fall in nominal interest rates and a rise in deflation adjusted interest rates . </Li> <P> During the Crash of 1929 preceding the Great Depression, margin requirements were only 10% . Brokerage firms, in other words, would lend $90 for every $10 an investor had deposited . When the market fell, brokers called in these loans, which could not be paid back . Banks began to fail as debtors defaulted on debt and depositors attempted to withdraw their deposits en masse, triggering multiple bank runs . Government guarantees and Federal Reserve banking regulations to prevent such panics were ineffective or not used . Bank failures led to the loss of billions of dollars in assets . </P> <P> Outstanding debts became heavier, because prices and incomes fell by 20--50% but the debts remained at the same dollar amount . After the panic of 1929, and during the first 10 months of 1930, 744 US banks failed . (In all, 9,000 banks failed during the 1930s). By April 1933, around $7 billion in deposits had been frozen in failed banks or those left unlicensed after the March Bank Holiday . </P> <P> Bank failures snowballed as desperate bankers called in loans, which the borrowers did not have time or money to repay . With future profits looking poor, capital investment and construction slowed or completely ceased . In the face of bad loans and worsening future prospects, the surviving banks became even more conservative in their lending . Banks built up their capital reserves and made fewer loans, which intensified deflationary pressures . A vicious cycle developed and the downward spiral accelerated . </P>

What is great depression of 1929 and what were its causes