The government said Monday that it will lower credit card fees for mom-and-pop grocery stores and restaurant owners next year in a bid to ease their financial burdens.
  

The Financial Services Commission and the ruling Saenuri party decided to set credit card commission rates imposed on small businesses with annual sales of 200 million won ($176,000) or less at 0.8 percent from next year, down from the current 1.5 percent.
  

Tariffs on mid-sized merchants with 2 to 3 billion won in sales will go down to 1.3 percent from 2 percent.
  

They will also guide credit card firms to reduce the rate on retailers with less than 1 billion won in sales to 1.9 percent from 2.2 percent.
  

Bigger chain stores with 1 billion won in sales or more will pay 1.96 percent in commission fees, unchanged from this year.
  

For debit cards, small and medium-sized businesses will face 0.5 percent and 1 percent commission rates, respectively, from next year.
  

The FSC expects 2.39 million retail businesses, or 97 percent, will benefit from the rate cut, saving a combined 670 billion won in a year.
  

The regulator said the rate cut is aimed at helping small grocers and shops, and credit card companies can afford a possible decrease in commission income.
  

"We mapped out the commission fee reduction plan based on a drop in card firms' borrowing costs and other related improvements," said the FSC. "They will manage the decline in such revenues."
  

South Korea's eight stand-alone credit card firms posted a combined net profit of 1.09 trillion won in the first six months of the year, up 1.3 percent from a year ago, according to separate government data. (Yonhap)