BUILDING society Nationwide lifted half-year profits by 14 per cent yesterday after improved sales in areas such as current accounts and credit cards.

With the overall mortgage market subdued, Nationwide said it had been competing very effectively in other parts of its business, including personal loans.

The UK's seventh largest financial organisation described the overall market as highly competitive but said that bottom-line profits still rose to £254.7m in the six months to September 30.

It said its 11 million customers benefited by a record £350m in the half-year through better interest rates and lower charges.