SEOUL, July 23 (AJP) - South Korea’s birth rate rose for an 11th consecutive month in May, offering a rare glimmer of hope for the world’s fastest-aging society.
According to data released Wednesday by Statistics Korea, 20,309 babies were born in May, up 3.8 percent from the same month a year earlier. It was the highest growth rate for May since 2011 — and the strongest monthly increase since the agency began compiling such data in 1981.
From January through May, births totaled 106,048, marking a 6.9 percent increase year-on-year and surpassing 100,000 for the first time in recent years.
The country’s total fertility rate — the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime — edged up to 0.75 in May, a slight increase from 0.73 the previous year. Still, it remains far below the replacement level of 2.1, and among the lowest in the world.
Government officials credited the uptick to a rise in marriages, a larger cohort of women in their early 30s, and an expansion of central and local policies aimed at easing the financial burdens of child-rearing. Marriage registrations in May rose 4 percent to 21,761 — the highest figure for the month since 2019 — marking 14 straight months of year-on-year increases.
Firstborn children accounted for 61.9 percent of all births. Second children made up 31.8 percent, while third or subsequent births comprised 6.3 percent.
Divorces, meanwhile, fell to 7,413 in May — a 6.4 percent drop and the lowest number for the month since 1997.
Yet despite the modest progress, South Korea’s overall population continued to decline. The number of deaths in May, 28,510, outpaced births by 8,202. Deaths were nearly unchanged from a year earlier, decreasing by just seven cases.
While the rising birth numbers suggest a potential demographic shift, experts caution that sustained gains will be needed to reverse South Korea’s deepening population crisis.
Without more robust growth, the country faces long-term challenges ranging from labor shortages to pension system strain and declining economic dynamism.
reporter
Candice Kim
candicekim1121@ajupress.com
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