Woori Bank cuts household loan rates after Lunar New Year
Published: 26 Jan. 2025, 17:57
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- LEE JAE-LIM
- [email protected]
![ATMs situated in downtown Seoul on Jan. 13. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/01/26/b46f3d69-6b63-438b-a584-e762951034ac.jpg)
ATMs situated in downtown Seoul on Jan. 13. [YONHAP]
Major banks will expedite efforts to lower interest rates on the back of mounting pressure from financial authorities to better reflect benchmark policy rate cuts.
Woori Bank plans to lower household loan rate margins by up to 0.29 percentage points on Friday, after the end of Lunar New Year holiday, following similar moves by Shinhan Bank and KB Kookmin Bank.
Among the five major banks — KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, Woori and NH Nonghyup — Shinhan initially lowered margins by 0.3 percentage points on Jan. 13, the first time in six months since banks have continuously raised loan margins under the pretext of curbing household loan demand since the third quarter of 2024.
KB Kookmin will follow suit by reducing the rates by 0.04 percentage points starting Monday.
Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Byoung-hwan emphasized the need for banks to reflect policy rate cuts more effectively at a press briefing on Wednesday.
“Although the policy rate was cut twice last year, the speed and extent of loan margin reductions have not been sufficiently reflected,” he said. “It is now time for banks to incorporate the cuts into their lending rates.”
BY LEE JAE-LIM [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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