Local banks expected to limit household loan growth to 1% this year: sources

Major lenders in Korea are expected to limit the growth in their household loans to 1 percent this year, industry sources said Sunday, sharply lower than their initial target of around 2 percent and also lower than the 1.5 percent earlier suggested by authorities. KB Kookmin, Woori, Hana, Shinhan and NH Nonghyup are expected to set average growth targets of around 1 percent, which would translate into a combined increase of roughly 6.45 trillion won ($4.34 billion) in household lending this year, they said. One of the five banks has set a tentative goal of keeping annual household loan growth, excluding policy loans, at 0.7 percent this year after recent consultations with financial authorities, according to a banking official who asked not to be named. The move comes even after the bank met its household lending growth target last year, which would normally allow it to keep its household loan growth at a similar rate, the official noted. "Authorities recently proposed a 1.5 percent target for overall household loan growth across the banking sector, but individual banks are expected to s

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