Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho says that the recent foreign capital outflow from the Korean financial market is within the expected level.

The minister appeared on a KBS program on Sunday and said that foreigners pulled out a total of three-point-nine trillion won worth funds from the Korean market in December last year.

He said that the figure is much smaller compared to 2013 when the capital outflow surpassed five trillion won over a month.

Regarding the real estate market, the minister said that the number of housing transactions is expected to drop to one million this year, but it should not be considered a plunge in the transactions, but as a process to move towards a stable housing market.

He said that the government will decide on whether to extend the eased lending rules for borrowers, which will expire on August 1, after assessing the market conditions.

In August last year, the finance ministry eased the loan-to-value (LTV) ratio and the debt-to-income (DTI) ratio, both aimed at widening access to home mortgages.