South Korea’s short-term foreign debt rose for the third straight quarter in the April-June period as banks increased their overseas borrowing, central bank data showed Wednesday.

The country’s short-term external debt totaled $131.8 billion as of end-June, up $8 billion from three months earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea.

By volume, the end-June figure marks the highest level since September 2012 when short-term foreign debt reached $135.1 billion.

Korea’s total external debt amounted to $442.2 billion as of end-June, growing $16.8 billion over the cited period.

The ratio of short-term debt against the country’s total debt reached 29.8 percent, worsening from 29.1 percent in the previous quarter. (Yonhap)