Rates for household loans inch up in July

Bank lending rates on new household loans inched up in July and interest rates paid by banks on new deposits slightly fell, central bank data showed Tuesday.

The average interest rates on fresh household loans extended by local banks came to 3.46 percent in July, up 0.05 percentage point from the previous month, according to the Bank of Korea. 

The BOK data came amid South Korea's efforts to tackle rising household debt. 

South Korea's overall household debt came to 1,388.3 trillion won ($1.22 trillion) as of end-June, up 10.4 percent from a year earlier, according to the official findings.

The average interest rates on new mortgages came to 3.28 percent in July, up 0.06 percentage point from June, according to the BOK.

The interest rates on all new loans stood at 3.45 percent in July, up 0.01 percentage point from a month earlier. The rates on new corporate loans came to 3.44 percent, down 0.01 percentage point from June.

The average rates paid by banks on fresh deposits came to 1.48 percent in July, down 0.01 percentage point from the previous month.

The gap between the interest rates paid to and by banks came to 1.97 percent in July, up from 1.95 percent in June. (Yonhap)