Korea's private debt hits record high in Q3

Loans extended to South Korean households and private firms reached a new high in the third quarter, accounting for over 180 percent of the country's overall gross domestic product, central bank data showed Monday.

According to data by the Bank of Korea, loans extended to households and private companies came to 182.6 percent of its total GDP at the end of September.

The reading marked a gain of 2.3 percentage points from three months earlier when the debt-to-GDP ratio, a barometer of fiscal soundness, breached the 180 percent mark for the first time in the country's history.

The rise largely came from an increase in household debts, partly prompted by a recent surge in demand for homes apparently driven by record low interest rates.

As of end-September, the country's household credit reached 1,166.4 trillion won ($996.5 billion), spiking 10.4 percent from the same period last year, the BOK said earlier. Household credit includes all loans extended to households as it includes credit purchases.

Loans extended by banks to local companies, on the other hand, gained 6.8 percent on-year over the cited period.

The central bank has kept its policy rate at a record low 1.5 percent since June in a bid to bolster spending and growth in Asia's fourth-largest economy.

The data comes amid escalating concerns that soaring household debt could crimp consumer spending down the road, ultimately putting a dent in the country's economic growth.

While upgrading South Korea's sovereign credit rating to Aa2 from Aa3 on Dec. 19, Moody's Investor Service warned measures to counter the recent increase in the country's household debt could weigh on growth next year. (Yonhap)