Seoul, Jan 8 (NationPress) The amount of excess funds possessed by households in South Korea experienced an increase in the third quarter, primarily due to a surge in income and stricter lending regulations, as reported by the central bank on Thursday.

According to preliminary figures from the Bank of Korea (BOK), the net financial funds—which are calculated as the difference between financial assets and liabilities—held by households and nonprofit entities climbed to 58 trillion won (US$40 billion) in Q3, up from 51.3 trillion won in the previous quarter.

Excess funds signify the surplus money remaining on household balance sheets after allocating resources to deposits, stock investments, and other financial assets, as stated by the Yonhap news agency.

Specifically, fund investments rose by 1.9 trillion won quarter-on-quarter, reaching 78.8 trillion won in the third quarter, while fundraising decreased from 25.6 trillion won to 20.7 trillion won.

BOK official Kim Yong-hyun explained during a press briefing that, "The increase in fund investment, including deposits with financial institutions, is a result of income growth surpassing spending. Additionally, last year's government stimulus contributed to this income rise."

He further noted that borrowing has diminished due to government measures tightening lending regulations in response to the escalating home prices.

In the same quarter, nonfinancial corporations increased their net funds by 19.5 trillion won, a significant rise from the previous quarter's 3.5 trillion won, while the government reported net lending of 5.9 trillion won, reversing from a net borrowing of 2.7 trillion won in the earlier quarter, according to the data.

Meanwhile, shares in Seoul continued to rise late on Thursday, extending a record-setting rally, as investors showed increased interest in technology stocks following Samsung Electronics' record quarterly earnings estimate.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) surged by 47.96 points, or 1.05 percent, reaching 4,599.02 as of 11:20 a.m.

The KOSPI briefly exceeded the 4,600-point threshold for the second consecutive day, hitting an intraday peak of 4,610.93 and raising the likelihood of closing above 4,600 later in the day.

The previous day, the index had climbed 0.57 percent to finish at an all-time high of 4,551.06 after peaking at 4,611.72.

U.S. stocks had a mixed performance overnight, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average declining by 0.94 percent, while the tech-focused Nasdaq composite rose by 0.16 percent.

Retail investors purchased a net 356.96 billion won (US$246 million) worth of stocks, countering net sales by institutions and foreign investors amounting to 361.17 billion won and 100.23 billion won, respectively.

Gains were led by technology, defense, and shipbuilding stocks.