The Bank of Korea says South Korea's short-term foreign debt ratio has reached the highest level in more than three years at 31-point-eight percent.

The ratio of short-term foreign debt to foreign reserves rose half-a-percentage point from the previous quarter.

It has been rising since the end of last year and it's the highest since the second quarter of 2015.

Bank of Korea(BOK) data on Thursday also show the ratio of short-term foreign debt to total external liabilities hitting a one-year high in the third quarter, edging up to 28-point-five percent.

Short-term external debt has a maturity of one year or less. The higher its percentage, the weaker the country's overseas payment capabilities.

A BOK official said that both percentages rose slightly in the third quarter but their levels are still stable.