SEOUL, July 25 (Xinhua) -- South Korean banks' loan delinquency ratio rose for two straight months owing to more new delinquent loan than bad loan settlement, financial watchdog data showed Friday.
Bank loan, overdue at least one month, gained 0.07 percentage points from a month earlier to 0.64 percent at the end of May after picking up 0.04 percentage points in the previous month, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).
New delinquent loan came to 3.5 trillion won (2.5 billion U.S. dollars) in the cited month, higher than the settlement of non-performing loan worth 1.7 trillion won (1.2 billion dollars).
The delinquency ratio has roughly been on the rise after hitting a bottom at 0.20 percent in June 2022 on the back of lingering uncertainties over massive household debt.
The country's central bank lowered its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points in February and May each to 2.50 percent after cutting it by the same basis points in October and November last year.
Excluding the settled bad loan, the delinquency ratio for fresh bank loan stood at 0.14 percent in May, higher than 0.12 percent in the previous month.
The delinquency ratio for bank corporate loan advanced 0.09 percentage points from a month earlier to 0.77 percent at the end of May, while the ratio for household loan added 0.04 percentage points to 0.47 percent. ■
