The COFIX (Cost of Funds Index), which serves as the benchmark for variable interest rates on mortgage loans in the banking sector, has fallen for six consecutive months.
According to the Korea Federation of Banks on the 15th, the COFIX based on new transactions in March was recorded at 2.84%, down 0.13 percentage points from 2.97% in February, marking a decline for six straight months. Last month, it dropped into the 2% range for the first time in two years and six months since August 2022. The COFIX based on outstanding balances also fell by 0.06 percentage points from 3.36% to 3.3%.
COFIX is the weighted average interest rate of funds raised by eight domestic banks, reflecting changes in interest rates of deposit products such as actual deposits, savings, and bank bonds handled by banks. The newly introduced "new outstanding balance-based COFIX," implemented in June 2019, also decreased by 0.09 percentage points from 2.89% to 2.8%.
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