By Anna J. Park
Korea's outstanding household debt posted an all-time high of 1,611.3 trillion won ($1.31 trillion), as of the end of March, the highest since related records began to be kept from late 2002.
According to the Bank of Korea (BOK), the debt increased 11 trillion won from three months ago. Discounting credit card debt, the total stood at 1,521.7 trillion won at the end of March.
In particular, home-backed loans during the first quarter soared to 858.2 trillion won, up 15 trillion won from the previous quarter, and the largest quarterly increase since the third quarter of 2017.
An official from the BOK explained that the rise in home-backed loans was mainly due to an increase in house transactions during the first quarter.
However, credit card spending in the first quarter was tallied at 89.6 trillion won, a decrease of 6.1 trillion won from the last quarter of 2019. The BOK explained the fall in credit card spending by households was attributed to a dwindled consumption due to COVID-19.
 |
Korea's outstanding household debt posted an all-time high of 1,611.3 trillion won ($1.31 trillion), as of the end of March, the highest since related records began to be kept from late 2002.
According to the Bank of Korea (BOK), the debt increased 11 trillion won from three months ago. Discounting credit card debt, the total stood at 1,521.7 trillion won at the end of March.
In particular, home-backed loans during the first quarter soared to 858.2 trillion won, up 15 trillion won from the previous quarter, and the largest quarterly increase since the third quarter of 2017.
An official from the BOK explained that the rise in home-backed loans was mainly due to an increase in house transactions during the first quarter.
However, credit card spending in the first quarter was tallied at 89.6 trillion won, a decrease of 6.1 trillion won from the last quarter of 2019. The BOK explained the fall in credit card spending by households was attributed to a dwindled consumption due to COVID-19.
