7월 주담대 금리 4.48%…2년8개월 만에 최고

In July, the prime interest rate reached 4.48%, marking its highest point in two years and eight months. The interest rate for household mortgages hit a new high, after eight months. The fixed-rate mortgage interest rate recorded its highest level in ten consecutive months, reaching 4.76%. According to the July Financial Institutions Weighted Average Interest Rate released by the Korea Monetary Authority on the 26th, the interest rates for deposits decreased by 0.04 percentage points compared to the previous transmission period.

The interest rates for loans to small and medium-sized enterprises, centered on enterprise loans, were lower than the transmission rate by 0.07 percentage points, at 4.20%. While interest rates for long-term loans rose due to factors such as the increase in interest rates for long-term loans and the expansion of support for small and medium-sized enterprises, the interest rates for small and medium-sized enterprise loans decreased.

Household mortgage interest rates rose to 4.48%, mainly driven by mortgage loans (4.36%→4.48%) and general credit loans (5.72%→5.97%), resulting in an increase of 0.14 percentage points compared to the transmission rate. The fixed-rate portion of household mortgages dropped from 22.7% to 21.0%. This marked the lowest record since May 2022 (20.7%).

The fixed-rate portion of mortgage loans also continued to decline, dropping from 37.7% to 31.9% over the past 12 months, marking the lowest record since February 2014 (31.8%). Financial consumer expert Kim Seong-jun explained that the decline in the weighted average interest rate for mortgages is likely due to the rise in the bank credit interest rate (AAA standard 6th month 4.32%→7th month 4.39%), while the decline in the interest rate for enterprise loans is a result of banks' decisions to provide more loans to small and medium-sized enterprises based on 'productive finance' policies.

The fixed-rate portion of mortgage loans is declining as consumers tend to choose adjustable-rate mortgages with lower interest rates. The interest rate for deposits held by deposit-taking banks rose by 0.13 percentage points to 3.21%, marking the fourth consecutive monthly increase.