Seoul: South Korea's external debt increased in the third quarter of the year from the previous quarter amid a rise in both short-term and long-term debts, central bank data showed Wednesday. The country's external liabilities had come to US$702 billion as of end-September, compared with $658 billion three months ago. According to Yonhap News Agency, the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea indicated that both short-term and long-term external borrowing saw an increase. Of the total, the country's short-term debt that matures in a year rose by $16.8 billion on-quarter to $158 billion, while long-term debt fell $27.6 billion over the same period to $544 billion. The ratio of short-term debt to foreign reserves increased by 0.8 percentage point to 34.4 percent, suggesting a change in debt-serving capability. Additionally, the ratio of short-term debt to total external liabilities also rose by 1 percentage point to 22.6 percent. Meanwhile, the country's net foreign financial assets reached $978 billion at t he end of September, up $119 billion from three months ago, marking the highest level ever recorded.