Indicators
South Korea’s Household Loans Jump, Weighing on Rate Cut Outlook
- Focus is on whether lending has peaked or is going further up
- BOK hopeful government measures will help cool housing market
This article is for subscribers only.
South Korea’s bank lending to households rose the most in years last month, offering more evidence that the central bank needs to tread carefully in softening its policy in case such a move rekindles an overheating of the housing market in Seoul.
The value of loans rose by 9.3 trillion won ($6.9 billion) in August from a month earlier in the biggest increase since the summer of 2021, according to Bank of Korea data provided Wednesday. Mortgage loans recorded the biggest jump in data going back to 2004.