Seoul South Korea (Photo courtesy of Ciaran O'Brien)

South Korean banks’ mortgage rates hit highest level in seven years: report

The loan rate averaged 3.63% in December, 0.12 ppt higher than a month earlier.

South Korean banks’ mortgage rates hit their highest level since May 2014 in December, reports Yonhap, according to data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

Local banks' mortgage loan rate averaged 3.63% a year in December, 0.12 percentage point (ppt) higher from a month earlier and the highest since May 2014.

Mortgage rates have risen after the BOK raised the policy rate in recent months as part of efforts to tighten its long accommodative policy put in place to cushion the fallout from the pandemic, according to Yonhap.

On 14 January, BOK once again raised the benchmark interest rate by another quarter percentage point to 1.25%. This marks the third hike during the pandemic, following increases in August and November 2021.

The central bank may not be done yet, as it hinted at further rate hikes in the coming months.

In contrast to mortgage rates, the country’s unsecured loan rate inched down 0.04 ppt to 5.12% in December 2021.

Meanwhile, the average interest rate of household loans set another record by rising to 3.66% in December from the previous month's 3.61%, according to BOK data.

Follow the link s for more news on

Join Asian Banking & Finance community
Since you're here...

...there are many ways you can work with us to advertise your company and connect to your customers. Our team can help you dight and create an advertising campaign, in print and digital, on this website and in print magazine.

We can also organize a real life or digital event for you and find thought leader speakers as well as industry leaders, who could be your potential partners, to join the event. We also run some awards programmes which give you an opportunity to be recognized for your achievements during the year and you can join this as a participant or a sponsor.

Let us help you drive your business forward with a good partnership!

Exclusives

Private fund tokens may be the future of investing
Kinexys seeks to keep a token’s sensitive financial information from prying eyes.
More tax perks could drive Philippine SMEs to go ‘green’
The Southeast Asian nation’s 1.1 million small businesses can be a target for green loans. 
Asia struggles with G20 payment targets
The ultimate goal is for cross-border payments to achieve “the speed of the internet.”