Bank loans to households expanded by a smaller margin in November, reflecting the government's tightened restrictions on home-backed loans and other lending, as well as the central bank's interest rate hike.

According to data from the Bank of Korea(BOK) on Wednesday, household loans issued by banks stood at one-thousand-60-point-nine trillion won as of the end of November, up three trillion won from a month earlier.

The on-month jump is down over two trillion won from the five-point-two-trillion-won growth in October, and less than half of the six-point-four-trillion-won surge in September.

Mortgage loans grew two-point-four trillion won on-month in November to 776-point-nine trillion won, which is the lowest growth since February 2018.

Other types of loans, including unsecured credit-based loans, grew 500 billion won on-month to 282-point-nine trillion won, similar to October.

A BOK official said while household loans grew at a slower pace in November due to tighter lending control, rising borrowing costs and seasonal factors, more time is required to forecast whether the upward trend has ended.