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Interest rates to hit 5.5% on Thursday yet savings and mortgage rates may FALL as a result | Personal Finance | Finance

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The BoE’s monetary policy committee (MPC) has hiked rates for 14 meetings in a row and a 15th is expected this week. Many analysts (including me) reckon the BoE should now hold rates rather than inflicting more pain on businesses, consumers and the housing market, but it probably won’t.

Its decision may partly be determined by August’s consumer price figure, published on Wednesday, one day before the BoE’s monetary policy committee (MPC) meets.

This could be the last BoE hike which means we have almost hit peak interest rates, which will be welcomed by almost everybody, except savers.

So how will your world change when we get there?

The UK economy has been surprisingly resilient, repeatedly refusing to collapse into recession as many including the BoE claimed it would.

Yet higher rates are hurting with output shrinking 0.5 percent in July, more than expected, while unemployment rose slightly as companies were more reluctant to hire staff.

This was “surprisingly weak”, said William Marsters, financial markets expert at Saxo. “The UK has technically avoided a recession but the economy is under strain.”

He still thinks the BoE will hike on Thursday, as does Jason Hollands, managing director at Evelyn Partners. 

This may be the last increase but we may have to wait until the second half of next year for lower rates, dragging out the pain for investors and borrowers. Savers will be happy, though.

Homeowners on variable rate mortgage should brace themselves for another jump in monthly payments after Thursday, said Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown.

For those coming to the end of a fixed-rate and looking to remortgage, the end of the rate rise cycle spells better news. “Mortgage rates have been falling lately. Assuming no major shocks on the inflation front, this may continue.”

Rates will still be far higher than they were a couple of years ago, though, putting pressure on borrowers and house prices. “We may have to wait much longer for rates to retreat substantially,” Coles said.

Savers have enjoyed almost two years of rocketing returns, as interest rates on best buy accounts jumped from around one percent in 2021 to six percent or more today.

Leading two-year fixed bonds nnow pay up to 6.05 percent, down from 6.15 percent in July. Five-year fixed rate bonds have topped out at 5.85 percent. Anyone who has been waiting for rates to go higher before fixing may find that this is as good as it gets.

Today’s highest fixed-rate is the National Savings & Investments one-year bond paying 6.2 percent, which may prove hard to beat. “The market may inch up from here, but we’re not expecting anything particularly striking,” Coles said.

Savers have woken up to the opportunity and are increasingly locking into best buy deals, depositing £10.1billion into fixed rate accounts in July, against an average of just £5.9billion over the previous six months.

READ MORE: BoE may surprise us all by finally doing something right

Easy access rates pay as much as five percent and these could inch up after Thursday.

If your money is sitting in an account paying next to nothing, do not wait. “It pays to switch to the best account today. You can always switch again later if rates rise much further from here,” Coles said.

Pensioners buying an annuity at retirement have done radically better as rates have soared.

Two years ago, a 65-year-old with a £100,000 pension might have got a level single life income of less than £5,000 a year. Today, they can get up to £7,317.

This is great news for retirees seeking the security of a guaranteed income for life, said independent pensions expert Andrew Tully.

As with savings, annuity rates have now settled and are unlikely to climb much higher, so now could be the perfect time to lock in for life.

Delay too long and they might even fall.

Always shop around, as comparison service Annuity Ready found the difference between the best and worst annuity can be almost 10 percent. For someone with £100,000 that could mean an extra £15,000 over a 20-year retirement.

Nobody can say for sure where interest rates will go next, but it looks like we’re near the peak. As we are finding, the impact may be surprising.



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IRGC Vows To ‘Kill’ Netanyahu, Trump Seeks Help To Reopen Strait Of Hormuz While Not Being Keen On Ceasefire

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March 15, 2026

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Iran War News Live Updates: Trump Attempt To Open Strait of Hormuz

US President Donald Trump called on allied countries to deploy warships to protect shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, and there were no indications on Sunday that the ongoing war would end soon.

“The Countries of the World that ​receive Oil through the Hormuz Strait must take care of that passage, and we will help — ⁠A LOT!” Trump wrote in a social media post on Saturday. “The U.S. will also coordinate with those Countries so that ​everything goes quickly, smoothly, and well.”

The president said military facilities on the Persian Gulf island had been “obliterated,” adding that he chose not to hit oil infrastructure “for reasons of decency.” He threatened to do just that should Iran “do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz.”

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upGrad Signs Term Sheet To Acquire Unacademy In 100% Share-Swap Deal

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upGrad has signed a term sheet to acquire Unacademy in a 100% share swap deal.

“Neither side will disclose the valuation until closing, when the papers are filed and the transaction becomes public,” Unacademy founder Gaurav Munjal tweeted on Sunday.

“I will be staying back as Co-Founder and CEO Unacademy – with the Goal to build Great Online Products for Learners in India and Globally,” Munjal added.

upGrad co-founder Ronnie Screwvala said his firm also agreed to a break fee if the deal is not closed. “If this closes. upGrad’s integrated model with an expanded focus from K12 to forever learning will be on a strong trajectory,”  Screwvala added.

“We at upGrad have signed a term sheet to acquire Unacademy in an all-stock deal, with Founder and CEO @gauravmunjal staying on to build Unacademy and focus on what it does best, creating online education products that learners love,” he added.

In January, UpGrad had called off a deal to acquire Unacademy at a valuation of around $290 million, citing valuation concerns and various business-related challenges within the Temasek and SoftBank-backed startup, according to sources.

Sources said that UpGrad changed its mind after realising the business of Unacademy is shrinking and there is fierce competition around the offline centre business of the edtech firm, which will require massive investments.

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Light Rains Bring Relief To City On Sunday Morning, AQI ‘Moderate’

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March 15, 2026

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Many areas of the city witnessed light rainfall on Sunday morning, bringing a much-needed respite from the prevailing dry conditions, the IMD said.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) stated that 5 mm of rainfall was recorded till 8.30 am.

According to the IMD data, Safdarjung and Lodhi Road recorded 0.8 mm rainfall each, while Palam received 0.4 mm. Ayanagar recorded 2.6 mm rainfall and Pitampura 3.5 mm, the highest among the stations.

ALSO READ: Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde Responds To Deepika Padukone’s ‘Children Are Choking’ AQI Post

Additionally, Mayur Vihar recorded 1.0 mm rainfall and Janakpuri 0.5 mm, while Ridge reported only a trace of rainfall.

The minimum temperature was recorded at 20.2 degrees Celsius, which is 5.1 notches above the seasonal average, while the maximum temperature is expected to settle around 28 degrees Celsius, the weather office said.

The AQI stood in the ‘moderate’ category at 9 am, with an Air Quality Index (AQI) reading of 190, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data showed.

According to the CPCB, an AQI between zero and 50 is considered ‘good’, 51 to 100 ‘satisfactory’, 101 to 200 ‘moderate’, 201 to 300 ‘poor’, 301 to 400 ‘very poor’, and 401 to 500 ‘severe’.

ALSO READ: Delhi Gasps For Air: AQI Over 200 On Nearly Every Other Day, Winter Peaks Hit 466

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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