Martin Lewis warns people with savings account 'this is a crucial moment to act'

Martin Lewis has warned people with a savings account there is a "crucial moment" to act NOW to boost your savings ahead of a key decision today. The BBC Sounds star and ITV regular urged Brits to check what interest they currently get ahead of an expected fall in the UK base rate this Thursday.

He said: "UK base rates are expected to be cut on Thursday, meaning interest available to savers will continue to decrease. So savers, this is a crucial moment to act. Check now what rate you're earning. If it's less than 5%-ish, we need to sort it."

vThe Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will meet on Thursday where it will decide whether to keep its base interest rate at 5 per cent - or reduce it again. The MPC voted to cut its base rate by 0.25 percentage points in August, down from a 16-year high of 5.25 per cent to its current level of 5%. It held the base rate of 5 per cent at its last meeting in September.

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Now, most forecasters say rates will be cut again this week, with economists polled by Reuters forecasting another 0.25 percentage point reduction in the benchmark rate, bringing it down to 4.75%. Data compiled by Refinitiv also predict a cut to rates this week, with 90% believing a cut will happen.

September’s inflation report moved the dial in favour of a November rate cut. The Consumer Prices Index (CPI) came in at 1.7 per cent on an annual basis in September. This was the slowest rate of inflation in over three years, coming in below the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target.

Services inflation also slowed from 5.6 per cent to 4.9 per cent in September, coming in comfortably below the Bank of England’s 5.5 per cent forecast.