Household debt rose at a record pace for the third quarter in 2023 as mortgage loans increased sharply amid high interest rates.

According to data released by the Bank of Korea on Tuesday, outstanding household credit reached one quadrillion-875-point-six trillion won, or around one-point-46 trillion U.S. dollars, at the end of September, climbing 14-point-three trillion won from the previous quarter.

The totality of the debt aggregates credit purchases and loans to households by financial institutions.

Mortgages increased by a record amount of more than 17-point-three trillion won over the previous quarter to climb by the most ever, while other types of household loans increased two-point-six trillion won in the same period.

The rise in household loans came despite high borrowing costs led by the central bank’s interest rate hikes in the pursuit to tame inflation.