Do you know what rate of interest your savings are earning?

If not you need to find out because you could be pouring your hard earned cash down the drain.

Research out this week suggests that UK savers are losing almost £18 billion a year after falling victim to sky-high inflation and low interest rates.

It's true, the rates paid on savings accounts haven't been jaw-dropping for some time. However, competitive returns are very much still available if you're smart about how you store your cash.

What's more, now inflation has fallen to 2.8% the best savings accounts can help you to beat inflation and ensure that the 'real world' value of your money is actually growing.

Read our guide: 3 Minute Guide to Making Your Savings Safe and use our savings account comparison to make sure you're not one of the many with savings sat in an account that pays you zilch.

What else is happening?

Inflation fell to 2.8% in May.

This represents its lowest level since December 2009. It's expected to fall further over the coming months but the Bank of England predict it will remain above its 2% target for some while yet... though given this drop was largely unexpected who knows what will happen.

Homeowners end up £194,000 better off than those that rent...

... and that's before house price increases are factored into the equation according to a new study! If only more people could actually get on the property ladder...

The window of opportunity for selling Olympic tickets has reopened

Anyone with unwanted tickets to the Olympics can post them for sale on the official London2012 website. You can also sell excess tickets to the Paralympic Games, or buy genuine tickets to a surprising number of events - they start from just £20.

Working parents could see the cost of childcare cut to a more affordable level

That's as long as the government's new Childcare Commission does their job. They've been tasked with the responsibility of cutting 'red tape' that pushes up cost without compromising on the quality of childcare available.

BOGOF is best and 'value' is king when it comes to supermarket savings

That's according to independent research agency that's looked into what it is that customers really want when they do their weekly shop. The use of vouchers and coupons to net extra savings has soared as a result.

The G20 summit has kicked off in Mexico

World leaders are congregating to try and sort out the mess that is the Eurozone crisis. Let's hope they have a productive week!