Seoul, Oct 12 (IANS) Debt held by the self-employed reached a record high of nearly 1,070 trillion won ($746 billion) in the second quarter of this year, data showed on Sunday.

Loans extended by financial institutions to self-employed individuals amounted to 1,069.6 trillion won as of the end of the April-June period, marking a sharp increase of 2 trillion won from the end of the previous quarter, according to the data by the Bank of Korea.

This represents the highest level since the central bank began compiling related statistics in 2012.

The delinquency rate among self-employed borrowers in lower income brackets also surged to a 12-year high as of the end of the second quarter, the data showed.

The rate rose by 0.15 percentage point from the previous quarter to reach 2.07 percent as of the end of the second quarter, marking the highest level since 2.84 percent was recorded in the third quarter of 2013.

In a separate report released last month, the BOK warned of growing risks stemming from the rising number of financially vulnerable self-employed individuals.

The central bank emphasised the need for targeted debt restructuring measures and policy support aimed at helping the self-employed recover their income, particularly those facing prolonged hardship due to high borrowing costs amid the sluggish economy.

Meanwhile, more than 210,000 passengers traveled through Incheon International Airport per day during this year’s eight-day Chuseok holiday period, marking the highest daily average for the holiday, data showed on Sunday.

An average of 217,613 travellers used the airport from Oct. 2-9, up 6.4 percent from the same period a year ago, according to data compiled by the airport. A total of 1.74 million passengers used South Korea’s main gateway airport, west of Seoul, during the period.

The figure is the highest daily average for the Chuseok holiday since the airport opened in 2001 and the second highest among all holiday periods, following the record daily average of 219,026 logged during this year’s Lunar New Year holiday, the airport said.

By region, 448,081 people traveled to and from Southeast Asia, followed by Japan with 431,827 and China with 296,168, the data showed.

—IANS

na/