SEOUL, May 19 (Xinhua) -- South Korean banks' loan delinquency ratio fell in March owing to the extended maturity of loans to small merchants and the self-employed, financial watchdog data showed on Thursday.
The ratio of bank loans, overdue at least one month, stood at 0.22 percent of the total at the end of March, down 0.03 percentage points from a month earlier, according to the Financial Supervisory Service.
It came as the government encouraged banks to extend the maturity of loans to small merchants and microbusiness owners hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The delinquency ratio for bank corporate loans declined 0.04 percentage points from a month earlier to 0.26 percent at the end of March.
The ratio for delinquent loans to households slipped 0.02 percentage points to 0.17 percent in the cited month. ■