Delinquency ratio on bank loans down in Sept. on beefed-up monitoring on unpaid payment

This photo shows signs about a bank's loan programs that were put up on the exterior of a lender in Seoul, Oct. 3. Yonhap

The delinquency ratio on loans extended by banks in Korea declined in September as they beefed up efforts to monitor and reduce payment in arrears, data showed Wednesday.

The delinquency ratio on banks' won-denominated loans came to 0.21 percent as of end-September, down 0.03 percentage point from a month earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).

On a year-on-year basis, the figure was also down 0.02 percentage point.

The ratio reflected loans overdue by at least one month in principal and interest payment.

Borrowing costs have been spiking in line with the central bank's series of rate hikes to combat inflation. Banks have beefed up monitoring on interest payments overdue amid worries that the delinquency ratio could rise.

The delinquency ratio on household loans was down 0.01 percentage point on-month to 0.19 percent at the end of September.

The figure for corporate loans came to 0.23 percent, down 0.04 percentage point from a month earlier, the data showed. (Yonhap)