SEOUL, April 23 (AJP) - South Korea recorded its first year-on-year monthly increase in births in more than a decade in February, offering a rare glimmer of hope in the country’s ongoing demographic crisis.
According to data released Wednesday by Statistics Korea, 20,035 babies were born in February, a 3.2 percent increase from the same month last year, or 622 additional births.
This marked the first time since 2014 that February births had risen and the largest such increase for the month since 2012, when births grew by 2,449.
February also became the eighth consecutive month to show a year-on-year uptick in births, a notable reversal in a country grappling with the world’s lowest fertility rate.
The national total fertility rate — defined as the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime — rose slightly to 0.82 for the month, up from 0.77 a year earlier.
Births increased in nine of the country's cities and provinces, including major metropolitan areas like Seoul and Busan. However, they declined in eight others, such as Gwangju and Sejong.
Marriage rates also saw a significant rise.
A total of 19,370 couples tied the knot in February, an increase of 2,422 or 14.3 percent from a year earlier, marking the highest number of February marriages since 2017. All 17 major cities and provinces reported gains in the number of marriages, continuing a trend of growth that began in April 2024.
“Births continue to increase due to factors including more marriages,” a Statistics Korea spokesman said. “The upward trend in births may continue.”
Despite the bump in births, South Korea’s population continued to decline naturally for the 64th consecutive month, as deaths once again outnumbered births.
In February, 30,283 people died — 401 more than a year earlier — resulting in a natural population decrease of 10,248 people.
Divorces were virtually unchanged, totaling 7,347 for the month, down by just seven cases or 0.1 percent from the previous year.
reporter
Candice Kim
candicekim1121@ajupress.com
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