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Households' excess funds hit record high in Q1 amid weak consumption

Published: 08 Jul. 2025, 14:51 Updated: 08 Jul. 2025, 14:53

Apartment complexes in southern Seoul [NEWS1]

Excess funds held by Korean households hit an all-time high in the first quarter amid a decline in housing purchases and other forms of consumption, central bank data showed Tuesday.

Net financial funds — the value of financial assets minus financial liabilities — held by local households and nonprofit organizations had amounted to a record 92.9 trillion won ($69.31 billion) as of end-March, up from 62.6 trillion won three months earlier, according to preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

Excess funds refer to the volume of money that remains on the balance sheets of households after people manage available funds via deposits, stock investments and other means.

"The increase was attributable to rising income, partly from year-end bonuses, along with a decline in new apartment supply and slowing consumption," BOK official Kim Yong-hyun told a press briefing.

Nonfinancial corporations raised 18.7 trillion won in net funds during the first quarter, up 2.5 trillion won from the previous quarter.

The increase came as demand for operating funds rose, partly due to bonus payments, although investment slowed due to deteriorating economic conditions and growing uncertainties, the data showed.

Yonhap