The invention concerns a method for producing optically active hydroxy-, alkoxy-, amino-, alkyl-, aryl- or chlorine-substituted alcohols or hydroxycarboxylic acids having 3 to 25 carbon atoms or their acid derivatives or cyclization products by hydrogenating the correspondingly substituted optically active monocarboxylic acids or dicarboxylic acids or their acid derivatives in the presence of a catalyst whose active constituent consists of rhenium or contains rhenium and at least one additional element of atomic numbers 22 to 83, with the provisions that: a) the at least one additional element of atomic numbers 22 to 83 is not rhenium, and; b) when producing optically active 2-amino-, 2-chloro-, 2-hydroxy- and 2-alkoxy-1-alkanols by the catalytic hydrogenation of correspondingly opticallyactive 2-amino-, 2-chloro-, 2-hydroxy- and 2-alkoxy carboxylic acids or their acid derivatives, the at least one additional element of atomic numbers 22 to 83 is not palladium nor platinum.