The economy is like a swamp that we wandered into on an afternoon hike and now can't find our way out. Night is falling and even the hike's leaders, who seemed so reassuring earlier in the day, are letting on that they don't know what's ahead or how to get out of this mess.

The "mess" for CD money isn't nearly as awful as it is for money you may have sunk in the stock market. Nevertheless, CDs yields are dwindling and aren't compensating you for inflation. For the second week in a row, we're seeing yields cut on the four CDs highlighted in this report.

The average one-year CD yield is 2.56 percent, down 5 basis points. The five-year average dropped 4 basis points to 3.39 percent. The one-year jumbo now averages 2.7 percent, off by 3 basis points, and the five-year shed 4 basis points and stands at 3.48 percent. A basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point.

It's not all gloom and doom. Many banks are competing for your money and are offering deals well above average. Visit Bankrate's high-yield CDs databank to get more return for your money.

Money market accounts aren't faring much better than CDs. The average yield dropped 3 basis points to 0.71 percent.

You can find nearly 30 institutions in Bankrate's high-yield money market and savings account database that are paying at least 3 percent on these FDIC-insured accounts.

-- Laura Bruce

 See CD rates in your area.