Mortgage loans extended by South Korean banks grew at a faster pace in October from the previous month, industry data showed Thursday, stoking concerns that the country’s household debts could be further exacerbated down the road on the back of low borrowing costs and eased property market rules.

The outstanding home-backed loans extended by Kookmin Bank, the country’s biggest mortgage lender, came to 84.63 trillion won ($80.32 billion) as of Oct. 28, up nearly 1 percent, or 836.5 billion won, from the end of last month, according to industry data.

The October gain is about 34 percent larger than the 623 billion won on-month rise tallied in September, the data showed.

Other lenders also saw a hike in their mortgage loan extension. (Yonhap)