SEOUL, Nov. 24 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea said Thursday it will soon introduce a new early warning system for potential risks from the nation’s massive household debt, especially as interest rates here may soon start an upward trend. Household debt totaled 1,295.8 trillion won (US$1.1 trillion) as of the end of September, up 3 [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 3 (Korea Bizwire) — Growing household debt and a looming U.S. rate hike are two major systemic risks facing South Korea’s financial system, a survey showed Thursday. The household debt issue topped the list of key systemic risks cited by market watchers at 70 percent, compared with 54 percent in April, according to [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 2 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea’s top financial regulator, nominated to lead the finance ministry, on Wednesday vowed to make all-out efforts to address the household debt problem. Yim Jong-yong, chairman of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), described it as a potential “core risk factor” especially as South Korea may have to raise [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 27 (Korea Bizwire) – A growing number of South Korean households face the risk of defaulting on their debts, a potential “time bomb” for Asia’s fourth-largest economy, a lawmaker said Tuesday. The number of “marginal” households came to 1.34 million as of March last year, a sharp increase from 1.12 million three years [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 25 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korea will control the supply of new apartments in a bid to curb demand for mortgage loans, the main culprit for soaring household debt in Asia’s fourth-largest economy, government officials announced Thursday. Household credit jumped 11.1 percent on-year to an all-time high of 1,257.3 trillion won (US$1,123.5 billion) [...]
SEOUL, July 13 (Korea Bizwire) – Household loans extended by local banks continued to rise at a fast rate in June, apparently on record low interest rates, central bank data showed Wednesday. Outstanding household loans extended by local lenders came to 667.5 trillion won (US$582.67 billion) as of the end of last month, up 6.6 [...]
SEOUL, June 30 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korean households are taking out loans at a faster clip than the increase in their income or ability to pay back, suggesting that household debt may cause serious problems down the road, the central bank said Thursday. In a report to the National Assembly, the Bank of Korea [...]
SEOUL, May 13 (Korea Bizwire) – More than one hundred days have passed since the Korean government established new guidelines for credit checks, leading to more rigorous income evaluations for loan applicants. The policy is part of efforts to ease the national economic debt burden, which now stands at over 1.2 quadrillion won in household [...]
SEOUL, April 24 (Korea Bizwire) – South Korean households’ debts owed to the nonbanking sector spiked over the past two months, suggesting that those with low credit ratings opted to borrow money despite relatively higher interest, central bank data showed Sunday. According to the data by the Bank of Korea, the outstanding household debts owed [...]
SEOUL, Mar. 21 (Korea Bizwire) — A growing number of South Korean households had difficulties paying off their debt with their income last year, data showed Sunday, raising concerns over their financial stability and shrinking domestic consumption. “Marginal households” whose debt-to-disposable income ratio is over 40 percent tallied at 1.58 million, accounting for 14.8 percent [...]