South Korea’s money supply rises 0.4% in September

The country’s M2, a key indicator of money supply, averaged 4,283.9 trillion won (US$3.2 trillion) in September, marking an increase of 17.1 trillion won from August, preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK) showed.

The latest increase extends the upward trend in the country’s money supply, which has been continuing since November last year.

M2 measures the amount of money circulating in the economy, including cash, demand deposits and other financial assets that can be easily converted into cash.

According to the BOK, the September growth was mainly driven by an increase in short-term deposits and money trusts with maturities of less than two years.

By sector, liquidity held by households and nonprofit organizations increased by 12.6 trillion won. Financial institutions also recorded an increase of 5.2 trillion won.

In contrast, liquidity held by nonfinancial corporations declined by 3.3 trillion won, the data showed.

Earlier, it was reported the annual number of foreign visitors to South Korea had surpassed 20 million for the first time this year.