Korea's money supply accelerates in Oct.

The money supply in South Korea grew at its fastest pace in 21 months in October on a steady rise in corporate lending, central bank data showed Wednesday.

The country's M2 totaled 2,674.5 trillion won ($2.37 trillion) in October, up 6.8 percent from 2,504.6 trillion won a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea.

(Yonhap)

The on-year gain was the largest since January last year, when it jumped 6.9 percent.

The growth rate of South Korea's M2 has remained at the modestly high level of between 5 and 6 percent since the beginning of 2018 thanks to increased corporate credit.

From a month earlier, the money supply edged up 0.9 percent in October, turning around from a 0.1 percent on-month decline in September, the BOK added.

M2 is a measure of the money supply that counts the currency in circulation, including bank debentures and deposits with a maturity of less than two years, along with stock investments. It is a key economic indicator closely monitored by the authorities. (Yonhap)