South Korea’s bank mortgage rates highest in November in over 7 years

In more than seven years, the mortgage rates in South Korean banks hit the highest level in November due to growing borrowing costs, according to data from the central bank. Bank of Korea (BOK) data showed that the mortgage loan rate in the country’s banks averaged 3.51% in November, an increase of 0.25% from the previous month. The figure is the highest since July 2014, when the rate was 3.54%. The unsecured loan rate in banks increased as well at 0.54% to 5.16% in November, the highest since September 2014, when the rate was 5.29%. As a result, household loan interest rate increased to 3.61% in November from 3.46% the month earlier, the highest since December 2018, when it was 3.61%. In recent months, loan rates have been rising as the government implemented measures to control increasing household debt and as the BOK hiked rates to tame inflation.