How China’s Black Monday might actually be good for you

Mortgage holders will see lower interest rates for longer

An office worker views a graph showing today's movement in the FTSE 100 Index, as it fell by as much as 190 points to dip below the 6,000-mark for the first time in more than two and a half years. It marks the tenth consecutive day of falls for the index, (Reuters)

Black Monday, which wiped billions off global markets, might not be bad news for anyone with a mortgage.

The plunge prompted analysts to revise their expectations for the timing of the Bank of England’s interest rate rise.

The UK interest rate is currently at an historic low of 0.5 per cent. That’s been good news for those on the property market, and it has kept mortgages cheap.

The Bank of England had hinted that interest rates would rise to 0.75 per cent as soon as the end of this year, with many expecting the rate rise to come in February.

But analysts have already put the rate rise back by as much as three months, until May, which would take full effect in August.

“I think it's good news for mortgage holders, as it must put back the date of the next rate rise,” said mortgage expert Ray Boulger of brokers John Charcol.

The FTSE100 index slipped more than 4 per cent on Monday, shocking investors. That's not good news for the UK economy, but it might not be as bad as it first looks.

The FTSE100 includes many multinational companies whose fortunes rise and fall in line with global markets. The UK, meanwhile, is expected to continue to grow.

On Monday business lobby the CBI said that trade won’t help the UK grow this year and that export growth will disappoint. But domestic growth - or the amount households are expected to spend - will counteract disappointing trade and may see the UK continue to grow.