Corporate bond sales in South Korea fell last month as market rates went up amid the expected interest rate hike by the central bank, financial watchdog data showed Thursday.

　　Corporate bond issuance reached 13.14 trillion won (11.66 billion U.S. dollars) in July, down 3.7 percent from the previous month, according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).

　　It was attributable to higher market rates amid expectations that the Bank of Korea (BOK) may raise its policy rate by the end of this year as the U.S. Federal Reserve hiked its benchmark rate to a range of 1.00-1.25 percent.

　　The BOK froze its policy rate on Thursday at an all-time low of 1.25 percent for the 14th consecutive month, but pressures remained on the bank to lift the policy rate, which was coming closer to the U.S. interest rate.

　　Market rates went higher, discouraging local companies from borrowing money through bond issuance.

　　Equity financing, including initial public offering (IPO) and rights issuance, gained ground. Rights issuance posted a double-digit decline, but the IPOs more than doubled to 1.19 trillion won last month.