April 18, 2024

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Household debt extended by banks in South Korea continued to increase at a steady pace in November, while fresh bank deposits spiked at the highest level in nearly five years, central bank data showed Dec. 11.

Fresh bank loans extended to households came to 7 trillion won ($5.9 billion) in the month, slightly slowing from a 7.2 trillion-won increase the month before, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.

Outstanding home-backed loans added 4.9 trillion won to an outstanding 648 trillion won, with other bank loans to households gaining 2.1 trillion won to 231.9 trillion won.

“The increase in home-backed loans continued to accelerate from 4.6 trillion won (in October) to 4.9 trillion won due to steady demand for funds for home purchases and rentals,” the BOK said.

Bank loans to companies also continued to grow from a month earlier in November but also at a reduced rate.

Outstanding corporate loans came to 875.2 trillion won as of end-November, up 5.9 trillion won from a month earlier when corporate loans gained 7.5 trillion won.

Bank deposits, on the other hand, skyrocketed, surging 30.3 trillion won from a month earlier in November, the highest amount since December 2014, when bank deposits added 52.2 trillion won, according to the BOK.

By Ram Garikipati and newswires (ram@heraldcorp.com)