Interest rate

Five million NatWest and RBS customers will be automatically moved to new accounts in January paying well below the best buys, making it a key trigger for them to seek out a better deal.

Amazon credit card customers should consider switching to another reward card, as they won't be able to earn loyalty points to spend at the e-tailer after September.

500,000 TSB customers with its Enhance current account should consider switching now, as the bank is cutting the amount of interest they can earn.

Graduates will pay less interest on their student loans from September, but fewer people with a pre-1998 mortgage style loan will qualify to defer theirs as the minimum earnings threshold needed to do so is falling.

Unemployment has fallen to 7.1% – within touching distance of the figure which will be used to decide whether interest rates will increase, official data has revealed.

Nationwide has revamped its FlexDirect current account to include an interest-free overdraft for a year and 5% in-credit interest on balances up to £2,500 for the same period.

Barclays has set aside a further £600 million for refunding customers who were mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI).

Mortgage rates are continuing to fall, with the joint lowest-ever fixed rate home loan on record launched today.

Bank of England policymakers decided against unleashing further emergency support for the recovery today, despite mixed signs over the health of the economy.

George Osborne has insisted there are "positive signs" for the UK economy despite a think-tank drastically downgrading its growth forecast for Britain.