The Bank of England cut interest rates by another half a percentage point this week to a record low of 1%, aiming to help the British economy out of recession by getting consumers and companies to spend again.
UK interest rates have now fallen for five months in a row and by a total of four percentage points as the 18-month-old global credit crunch has brought the economy to its knees.
UK house prices are falling sharply, big-name businesses are failing and hundreds of thousands of people have already lost their jobs.
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The International Monetary Fund has predicted the British economy will shrink 2.8% this year.
With rates approaching zero, the Bank of England is expected to resort to quantitative easing - controlling the supply of money rather than just its cost - to boost demand.