Births up 13% in August to highest in 7 years
The number of babies born in Korea shot up 13 percent in August from a year earlier, marking the 26th consecutive month of increase, government data showed Wednesday. A total of 23,703 babies were born in August, up from 20,983 a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Data and Statistics. It marked the highest figure for any August since the 24,371 posted in 2019. The country's total…
Korea witnessed a 13% surge in August births, marking the 26th consecutive monthly increase, according to government data released on Wednesday. The Ministry of Data and Statistics reported a total of 23,703 babies born in August, up from 20,983 a year earlier. This figure marked the highest for any August since 2019, with 24,371 babies born that month.
The country's total fertility rate, representing the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime, climbed to 0.87 in August, a 0.09 increase from the previous year. This rate remains below the 2.1 births per woman needed to sustain a stable population without immigration. The upward trend in births has persisted since July 2024, with 193,783 babies born from January to August 2024, a 14.5% rise compared to the same period in 2023.
The recent increase in births is attributed to a growing number of marriages, a larger population in their 30s, and more positive attitudes toward having children. However, the number of marriages in August dropped 1.2% from the previous year to 19,21.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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- Births up 13% in August to highest in 7 years koreatimes.co.kr
