SEOUL, Aug. 22 (Xinhua) -- South Korean bank's industrial loans rose 12.1 percent in the first half, growing at the fastest pace in history, the nation's central bank said Friday.

    According to the Bank of Korea, the amount of corporate lending reached 493.4 trillion won (467.4 billion U.S. dollars) in the January-June period.

    "The growth of local banks' industrial lending hit a record high in the first half on higher demand from smaller companies," said Kim Hwa-yong, an official at the central bank. "Some larger firms also borrowed money to cover mergers and acquisitions."

    By industry, bank loans to manufacturers and builders grew at their fastest clip in the first half contributing greatly to the total growth of industrial loans.

    Lending to manufacturers amounted to 168.5 trillion won (159.6 U.S. billion dollars), gaining 18.7 trillion won (17.7 billion U.S. dollars) while that to construction firms rose 7.2 trillion won (6.8 billion U.S. dollars) to 51.5 trillion won (48.8 billion U.S. dollars), the BOK said.