SEOUL - Debt held by the self-employed in South Korea hit a record high last year, fueling worry about loan delinquency amid higher borrowing costs, statistical office data showed Saturday. Debt owed by a self-employed person to banks and non-banking financial institutions averaged 179.18 million won (137,430 U.S. dollars) at the end of 2022, up 1.1 percent from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea. It continued to grow for the fifth successive year since relevant data began to be compiled in 2017, reaching a new high amid higher interest rates. The country’s central bank raised its benchmark interest rate by 3.00 percentage points to 3.50 percent between August 2021 and January 2023. The average loan from non-banking institutions increased 5.3 percent, but the loan from banks declined 1.6 percent last year, indicating a worsened debt quality. The loan delinquency ratio for the self-employed climbed 0.05 percentage points from a year earlier to 0.37 percent at the end of 2022.