October 27, 2009

Savings rates: abroad and at home

Filed under: News — Tags: savings, savings rates —

National Savings & Investments (NS&I), the government’s financial arm, has raised savings rates this week in the hope of attracting more savers. The good news is that this already means that it enters the top league tables on returns.

The bad news, however, is that mainland savings rates for both branch and online savings accounts remain muted by the low Banking of England interest rate.

The international market isn’t much better due to recent changes at HMRC which means that offshore saving doesn’t necessarily offer the same advantages it used to.

Still, at least it is encouraging to see some providers actively trying to encourage more savers to join with them. This is especially important as the savings ratio for the UK has increased to 5.6%, which means that more people in the UK are trying to save and invest their money.

The savings tables at Moneyfacts shows an interesting perspective, with building societies in general leading the way with savings rates for normal accounts, though interest does generally stay under 2%.

The really interesting part of the modern savings landscape, though, is that both banks and building societies are trying to lock savers into bond or fixed term accounts - ie, that instead of instant access or notice savings accounts, they are looking for guaranteed periods of investment where the money cannot be touched.

This has to be a disturbing development, though, because in the current landscape, savers really should be able to rely on competitive savings rates, and still have access to their money. Instead, they are being asked to put up with little access and little return.

While the hope is that the financial crisis is easing, the warning remains that the UK could still face a lost decade similar to the one Japan experienced during the 1990’s.

If that happens, current savings environment is unlikely to change much for the better soon.

Story link: Savings rates: abroad and at home