Issued 168.6 Trillion Won in Government Bonds Last Year... 92 Trillion Won Maturing Next Year

MoEF, Publishes '2022 National Debt White Paper'

Last year, the issuance volume of government bonds reached 170 trillion won. The scale of government bonds maturing next year exceeds 92 trillion won.

On the 26th, the Ministry of Economy and Finance published the "2022 Government Bond White Paper" containing this information.

According to the report, the total issuance volume of government bonds in 2022 was 168.6 trillion won, a decrease of 11.9 trillion won compared to the 2021 issuance volume (180.5 trillion won). However, it still remained at a high level compared to the pre-COVID-19 period (2019: 101.7 trillion won).

The net issuance volume, which actually increases the national debt balance, was 97.3 trillion won, down 23.3 trillion won from the previous year, while the refinancing issuance volume due to maturities was 71.4 trillion won, an increase of 11.5 trillion won from the previous year.

According to the white paper, as of the end of last year, the government bond maturity repayment amount for 2023 is 85.9604 trillion won, increasing to 92.3 trillion won next year. Afterward, the scale gradually decreases, reaching about 39.4943 trillion won in 2029.

Choo Kyung-ho, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, stated in the foreword, "2022 was a year when the global bond market experienced its worst performance since 1949 due to consecutive shocks such as a sharp rise in global inflation and accelerated monetary tightening by major countries." He added, "However, our government bond market successfully issued 168.6 trillion won worth of government bonds, supporting South Korea's economy in overcoming the complex crisis."

He continued, "Efforts to advance the government bond market, such as tax exemption on foreign investors' government bond investments, led to the meaningful achievement of South Korea being the first country to be listed as a watchlist country in the World Government Bond Index (WGBI) in September last year." He added, "Going forward, we will intensify efforts not only for the 'final inclusion in the WGBI' but also for launching the international central securities depository government bond integrated account service, introducing 30-year government bond futures and government bonds for individual investors, and upgrading the specialized government bond distribution market system, further accelerating institutional improvements made so far."

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economy and Finance also published an English version to enhance foreign investors' interest and understanding. The Korean and English versions of the white paper can be accessed in electronic document form through the Ministry of Economy and Finance's online homepage.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.