Korea's land prices rise 1.25% in H1

South Korea's land prices continued to grow in the first half of the year, government data showed Wednesday, amid a residential building construction boom partly created by a series of government measures aimed at boosting the property market.

In the six months ended June 30, land prices gained 1.25 percent from six months earlier, accelerating from a 1.07 percent increase over the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

The tally marks the steepest rise in eight years after a 2.72 percent spike posted in the first half of 2008. The ministry said June also marked the 68th consecutive month of increase since November 2010.

Average land prices rose in all 17 major cities and provinces throughout the country, but price increases in rural areas led the overall rise.

Land prices in rural areas rose by an average 1.48 percent in the first half, while those in Seoul and its surrounding area gained 1.12 percent.

The southern resort island of Jeju showed the sharpest increase in land prices, posting an average 5.71 percent rise in the first half. The new administrative town of Sejong, built some four years ago, saw its land prices grow 2.10 percent.

Such an increase in land prices apparently follows a construction boom in the real estate market.

In the January-June period, the number of home transactions spiked 23.4 percent on-year to 468,000, while the government issued 355,309 construction permits for new homes, up 18.4 percent from the same period last year, the ministry said earlier.

Land transactions, on the other hand, dropped 8.1 percent on-year in the first half.

"Overall land transactions fell slightly from a year earlier due to a recent drop in house transactions, but there still remain strong demands for land in many areas with room for development, partly supported by record low interest rates," the ministry said in a press release. (Yonhap)