Banks’ rate for fresh loans edges down in June

The average lending rate of major banks in South Korea dropped from a month earlier in June, data showed Monday. COFIX, or the Cost of Funds Index, a benchmark lending rate for mortgage loans, came to 3.52 percent last month, down 0.04 percentage point from a month earlier, according to the data from the Korea Federation of Banks. The on-month decline follows a 0.02 percentage-point increase in May, which then ended five consecutive months of decline. The COFIX rate for outstanding loans slipped 0.01 percentage point to 3.73 percent in June, extending its declining streak to the eighth consecutive month. COFIX is calculated based on the cost of information on funds provided by eight domestic banks in South Korea. They are Nonghyup Bank, Shinhan Bank, Woori Bank, Standard Chartered Bank Korea, Hana Bank, Industrial Bank of Korea, Kookmin Bank and Citibank Korea. Source: Yonhap News Agency