SEOUL, Nov. 5 (Yonhap) -- The growth of credit card spending in South Korea slowed in October due to the shortened number working days for the month because of the annual fall harvest holiday, an industry association said Thursday.
Spending via credit cards, excluding cash advances, amounted to 28.4 trillion won (US$24.1 billion) last month, up 9.44 percent from a year earlier, according to the Credit Finance Association. The October figure slowed from a 14.7 percent on-year advance in September.
"Consumer sentiment improved and tax benefits from car purchases prompted people to expand the use of credit cards from the previous year," an official at the association said.
But growth in credit card bills slowed mainly because of the "Chuseok" fall harvest holiday that fell in October of this year, he added.
The on-year growth of Koreans' card spending had slowed since people curtailed the use of the plastic money, hit by the economic slump sparked by the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
But as signs of an economic rebound are emerging, credit card spending has begun to grow, pointing to a pick-up in domestic demand.
The Korean economy grew 2.9 percent in the third quarter from three months earlier, the fastest expansion in more than seven years, on improving domestic demand and robust exports. (Yonhap)
Today In Asia : Last Update : 11:54:44 5 November 2009 (GMT+7:00)
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