South Korean banks forecast the credit risks of households to stay high in the second quarter on concerns over excessive household debt, the central bank said Thursday.

An index gauging larger firms’ credit risks came in at 25 for the April-June period, unchanged from the previous quarter, according to a survey of 16 local banks conducted by the Bank of Korea.

The number marked the highest level since 28 tallied for the first quarter of last year.

Credit risks refer to the likelihood of borrowers being unable to repay debt. A reading above zero means that the degree of credit risks is high.

“Low-income families and fragile self-employed are feared to see their debt-servicing capacity worsen due to high household debt against income and delay in improvement of income conditions,” the central bank said in a statement. (Yonhap)