Household Debt Exceeds W100 Million for Every Korean

Household debt in Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and the administrative city of Sejong has exceeded W100 million a head (US$1=W1,322). That means the debt of borrowers there is more than double their income.

According to the Bank of Korea, the average household debt per borrower across the country reached W89 million in the first quarter, up 9.1 percent from late 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic.

But in Seoul, Gyeonggi and Sejong it stood at more than W100 million. Sejong topped the list with W112 million, followed by Seoul (W106 million) and Gyeonggi (W103 million). Next came Daegu (W99 million), Jeju and Incheon (W97 million each), Busan (W96 million), and Ulsan (W95 million).

Korean households' average loan-to-income ratio stood at a whopping 227 percent at the end of the first quarter.

Debt grew most rapidly among young borrowers. Debt per borrower among those in their 20s and 30s reached W74 million, up 20.4 percent from late 2019, but among those in their 40s and 50s it increased 5.8 percent to W100 million and among the over-60s 2.8 percent to W83 million.