S. Korean banks' lending rate rebounds in September

SEOUL, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- South Korean banks' lending rate rebounded last month amid the government's efforts to control a rapid growth in household debts, central bank data showed Thursday.

The weighted average rate for fresh bank loans rose 0.14 percentage points over the month to an annualized 4.62 percent in September, marking the first rebound in four months, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).

The turnaround was attributed to the financial authorities' efforts to contain the households' rush to buy new homes with borrowed money.

It ran counter to higher market rates amid expectations for the BOK's policy rate cut. The central bank lowered the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 3.25 percent earlier this month.

The rate for new bank loans to households jumped 0.15 percentage points to 4.23 percent in September compared to the previous month, after adding 0.02 percentage points in August.

The mortgage loan rate for households soared 0.23 percentage points to 3.74 percent, and the credit loan rate surged 0.22 percentage points to 5.87 percent.

The rate for banks' new corporate loans climbed 0.10 percentage points over the month to 4.77 percent in September.

The lending rate for big companies gained 0.03 percentage points to 4.81 percent, and the rate for small firms went up 0.15 percentage points to 4.74 percent.

The weighted average rate for new bank deposits was up 0.05 percentage points from a month ago to an annualized 3.40 percent in September. ■