South Korea household credit shrinks at record pace in first quarter
FILE PHOTO: People wear masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as they take a walk on a sunny spring day in Seoul, South Korea, May 3, 2022. REUTERS/ Heo Ran
SEOUL : South Korea's household credit shrank at a record pace in the first quarter as high interest rates suppressed demand, central bank data showed on Tuesday.
The country's total household credit stood at 1,853.9 trillion won ($1.40 trillion) at the end of March, down 0.7 per cent from December and down 0.5 per cent from a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea.
It was the biggest quarterly drop in the data series that started in the last quarter of 2002, faster than the 0.2 per cent loss in the previous quarter and the previous record of 0.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2009. Its annual fall was the first ever.
South Korea's central bank was on a tightening campaign for a full year through January, raising interest rates to the highest level in 14 years. It has paused since then.
($1 = 1,320.9300 won)
