Economists are warning of the rise of zombie companies - struggling firms that can just about afford the interest payments on their loans - and zombie households, those on interest-only mortgages, yet unable to pay off the loan itself.

BBC: Everybody's shuffling: Rise of zombies in modern life

"A zombie company is one which is generating just about enough cash to service its debt, so the bank is not obliged to pull the plug on the loan, " explains Mark Thomas, business strategy expert at PA Consulting and author of The Zombie Economy.

BBC: 'Zombie' companies eating away at economic growth