Seoul: The delinquency rate on loans extended by local banks decreased in December, primarily due to a reduction in soured household loans and an increase in bad-loan write-offs, data revealed Monday. The delinquency rate on banks' won-denominated loans dropped by 0.08 percentage points from the previous month to 0.44 percent by the end of December, as per preliminary data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).
According to Yonhap News Agency, the amount of newly delinquent loans amounted to 2.5 trillion won (US$1.73 billion) in December, a decrease from the 2.8 trillion won recorded the month prior. Conversely, the amount of bad loan write-offs increased by 2.3 trillion won, totaling 4.3 trillion won during the reported period.
The FSS data further detailed that the delinquency rate on corporate loans was at 0.5 percent at the end of December, a reduction of 0.1 percentage point from a month earlier. Similarly, the rate on household loans decreased by 0.03 percentage points to 0.38 percent during the same period.