S. Korea's Household Debt Hits Record $1.3 Trillion in 2017

Household debt rises to 1,450.9 trillion won at end-December
Annual growth in 2017 slows to 8.1% from 11.6% in 2016

Residential apartment buildings are seen from the Seoul Sky observation deck of the Lotte Corp. World Tower in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday, Aug. 11, 2017. South Korea's stocks and currency fell after President Donald Trump warned North Korea that if it "does anything" to the U.S. or its allies "things will happen to them like they never thought possible."Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

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By Jiyeun Lee

February 22, 2018 at 3:00 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

South Korea’s household debt rose to a new record in 2017, even as the government tightened lending terms to cool the property market.

Household debt including credit purchases rose to 1,450.9 trillion won ($1.3 trillion) at the end of December, up 8.1 percent from the previous year, according to a statement from the Bank of Korea. While the pace of increase remained fast, it was the slowest in three years.