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| ▲ Signs about a bank's loan programs are put up on the exterior of a lender in Seoul, in this file photo taken Nov. 10, 2024. (Yonhap) |
banks-household loans
Major banks to cut household loans this year: data
SEOUL, Feb. 5 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's top five banks are likely to slash their household loans this year compared with last year amid tighter curbs, data showed Wednesday.
According to the data submitted to Rep. Lee In-young, the top five banks -- KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH Nonghyup -- plan to control their household loan growth at a combined 14 trillion won (US$9.55 billion) this year, lower than last year's 14.68 trillion won.
The loans do not include policy loans, such as low-interest loans for the underprivileged.
Shinhan plans to curb its household loan growth at 2.3 trillion won, KB Kookmin at 3 trillion won and Hana at 3.5 trillion won.
Household loans extended by South Korean banks fell for the first time in nine months in December amid global uncertainties and tightening loan regulations.
Banks' outstanding household loans stood at 1,141 trillion won (US$782.1 billion) as of end-December, down 400 billion won from a month earlier, the first decline since March, when banks' household borrowing went down by 1.7 trillion won.
Household borrowing had since risen sharply in line with surging housing prices in Seoul and some of its surrounding regions to as high as 9.2 trillion won in August.
In response, financial authorities have pressed major lenders to implement tight lending rules to rein in surging household debts and rising home prices, leading to a steady decline in the total amount of loans.
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