Transcript: Inflation protection for your savings
By Bankrate.com

Anchor intro: If you're keeping money in the bank, you know how low rates are. And if you've done any food shopping lately, you know how high prices are. But what you may not have considered is what low savings rates and high inflation can do to your savings. Bankrate.com offers some solutions.

Voice-over 1: About the only thing that doesn't seem to be going up these days? The interest on your savings account.

Voice-over 2: While the inflation rate this year is hovering around 4 percent, the average bank money market account is paying less than 2, which means you're going backwards. What's an investor to do?

Voice-over 3: You could consider stocks. Over time, they've beaten inflation. But the key word there is "over time." This year, the stock market is losing money.

Voice-over 4: In the past, I-bonds could help. These risk-free government bonds are supposed to pay a fixed interest rate, plus an inflation kicker. So you were guaranteed to beat inflation.

Voice-over 5: But today's I-bonds are lousy. Ten years ago, when I-bonds first came out, the fixed rate was around 3 percent. Now it's zero. You only earn the inflation rate. So instead of a return guaranteed to beat inflation, now you're guaranteed not to.

Voice-over 6: Which leads many pros to say no to I-bonds.

SOT: "I prefer not to have I-bonds as part of my portfolio. I would opt generally for a CD as an alternative."

Voice-over 7: Which brings us back to banks. If you're not happy with your rates, shop them like you would gas or groceries. There are online resources that can help.

Standup: There's not a thing you can do about high gas prices, or sinking stocks, or lousy I-bonds. But you can shop your savings, and you can earn 40 to 50 percent more. Check it out. For Bankrate.com, I'm Kristin Arnold.