Rise is good news for some

Savers should be rejoicing that interest rates have moved up again. The 0.25% increase announced on Thursday should make their nesteggs go further - and it's a far cry from last year's widely held view that rates would tumble to euro-levels.

But the six savers who finance every mortgage borrower should not cheer too soon. Other than those accounts which promise to track base rates, records from the banks and the building societies show they take their time in passing on base rate increases. When the base rate went up 0.25% last September the Moneyfacts Instant Access average rose by just 0.01%. The 90-day notice rate stayed unchanged.

Savers did a little better from November's 0.25% base rate increase - two months later it translated into an 0.16 instant access rise and a 0.15% gain on the 90-day account.

But when base rates are on the way down, average interest rates can often fall fast. When they slid 0.5% last February, 90-day savers' rates went down by an average 0.62% over the following two months. What the latest rise will bring will not be clear for some days, but it may not be good news.

Meanwhile, West Bromwich Building Society has launched a 6.75% Millennium Bonus postal account. Aimed at sums of £5,000 upwards, the variable rate will fall by 1.25% on July 31 when the introductory bonus disappears and it could fall further next January, when its guarantee not to drop below base rates expires.

Royal Bank of Scotland has a three-year guaranteed income account where interest rises each year, averaging 7.17%. But there are stiff early withdrawal penalties and you need £50,000 to access this rate.