Household loans across South Korea’s financial sector rose 9.3 trillion won in May, sharply above April’s increase and a year earlier. Mortgage lending growth slowed, but other loans, including credit loans, swung to an increase and drove the overall rise. Regulators held a debt monitoring meeting and plan weekly checks on firms that miss management targets. Banks will pursue voluntary measures such as cutting new credit loan limits for high earners.

South Korea\'s financial regulators plan to curb the practice of financial companies repeatedly extending the statute of limitations on overdue loans while continuing collection efforts after receiving tax benefits. Under revised rules, firms will need to let the statute of limitations run its course when it first comes due to have personal overdue loans recognised as losses. The changes also tighten requirements for selling such debts, introduce reporting and disclosure systems, and revise related guidelines and supervision rules.