1.   Even the lower rate makes the offerings from other high street banks look miserly.

2.   Lower rates have made other currencies, such as the dollar, more attractive.

3.   Lower rates make it cheaper for companies to borrow money, which can boost their profits and stock prices.

4.   Lower rates make stocks more appealing than bonds and bank deposits.

5.   Lower rates usually make loans more attractive and help to boost car and truck sales.

6.   Those high failure rates make it an efficient way of screening out teenagers who might later fail a university course.

7.   Also, higher rates make borrowing more costly and can crimp corporate profits.

8.   And higher rates make it more expensive for companies to borrow money and invest, curbing their earnings.

9.   And higher rates would make it more expensive for companies to borrow money and invest, hurting their earnings.

10.   And, of course, low rates also make alternative investments to stocks less attractive, helping share prices.