Corporate loans rise slightly in Q2

Loans extended to local businesses rose slightly in the April-June period from a quarter earlier on increased operating expenses and facility investments, central bank data showed Thursday.

Outstanding corporate loans came to 1,016 trillion won ($900 billion) in the second quarter, up 1.4 percent from the preceding three months, according to data from the Bank of Korea.

Compared with a year earlier, the second quarter figure marked a 4.7 percent gain.

(Yonhap)

In terms of where the money was spent, loans extended to cover companies' operating expenses were up 0.7 percent in the second quarter to 601 trillion won from a quarter earlier, the bank said.

Loans for facility investments rose 2.5 percent in the second quarter to 415 trillion won from a quarter earlier and up 10.9 percent from a year earlier, it said.

By sector, money provided to service sector firms jumped 8.1 percent on-year to 589.3 trillion won at the end of June. Loans to manufacturers came to 331.7 trillion won, up 0.4 percent from a year earlier.

The latest findings showed borrowings by construction firms rose 2 percent on-year to 39.7 trillion won. (Yonhap)