SEOUL, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Surplus fund held by South Korean households hit a new record low last year on rising private consumption, central bank data showed Wednesday.
Net fund management for households and nonprofit organizations amounted to 49.3 trillion won (43.2 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). It was the lowest since the bank began compiling the data in 2009.
The net fund management refers to surplus fund owned by households, which is calculated by subtracting a money borrowing from the money investment such as deposit, insurance, pension savings and the bond purchase.
The record-high surplus fund came as households expanded consumption last year. Consumer spending increased 4.2 percent in 2018, faster than the growth rate of 2.7 percent for the real gross domestic product (GDP).
The general government posted a net fund management of 55 trillion won (48.2 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018, marking the biggest as revenue from the corporate and income taxes hit record high last year.
Companies expanded financing last year. The net fund borrowing by local firms amounted to 39.8 trillion won (34.9 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018, logging the highest since 2012.
The large corporate financing came as higher global crude oil price worsened corporate profitability.
