April 26, 2024
Economy
Debt burden of Korean youth soars
[THE INVESTOR] The debt burden of Koreans in their 20s and 30s has grown at the fastest pace among all age groups over the past three years, central bank data showed on June 29.
The so-called loan-to-income ratio for 20-somethings and 30-somethings has risen 36.2 percent over the three years, meaning their debt has gained at an annual average rate of 12 percent amid stalled income growth, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.
Yet the LTI for the young Koreans came to 185.2 percent as of end-March, lower than the overall figure of 205.5 percent for 1 million borrowers monitored by the central bank.
The ratio refers to the portion of outstanding loans to annual income. An increase in the ratio means that people take out more loans as they can‘t cover financial needs with income.
By Alex Lee and newswires (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)
The so-called loan-to-income ratio for 20-somethings and 30-somethings has risen 36.2 percent over the three years, meaning their debt has gained at an annual average rate of 12 percent amid stalled income growth, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.
Yet the LTI for the young Koreans came to 185.2 percent as of end-March, lower than the overall figure of 205.5 percent for 1 million borrowers monitored by the central bank.
The ratio refers to the portion of outstanding loans to annual income. An increase in the ratio means that people take out more loans as they can‘t cover financial needs with income.
By Alex Lee and newswires (alexlee@heraldcorp.com)
