No. of births in S. Korea down 0.5% y/y in August

8월 출생아 2만2천명, 동월기준 역대 최저…22개월째 인구 감소 South Korea's population continues to decline. Data show that in August there were more deaths than births. In fact there were fewer babies born than any month on record. Min Suk-hyen reports. The number of births in South Korea has dropped once more, declining on-year for 69 consecutive months. Statistics Korea said on Wednesday that the number of newborns in August stood at 22-thousand-291, down point-5 percent from a year earlier. This is the lowest figure for any month of August since data was first compiled in 1981. But, the agency says that fall in the number of births is slowing down. "The point-5 percent decline in August is the smallest fall since December 2015. This is likely because number of births appears to be increasing in large cities on a monthly basis and the number of births is gradually rising among those aged 35 and older." The country also reported its highest number of deaths for the month of August since records began. More than 25-thousand-800 deaths were recorded in August, up 2-point-1 percent from the same month last year. The number of deaths has continued to outnumber births for 22 straight months. The number of marriages in August also hit a record low of 14-thousand-720, down 2-point-1 percent on-year. The fall was attributed to a population decline in people in their 30s as well as to the COVID-19 pandemic. Strict social distancing rules and a ban on gatherings led many couples to push back their wedding dates. Statistics Korea added that the number of marriages has been declining since 2012. Meanwhile, the number of divorces plunged point-9 percent on-year to over 8-thousand-300 cases. Min Suk-hyen, Arirang News. #SouthKorea #birth #Population 📣 Arirang News(Facebook) :   / arirangtvnews   📣 Arirang News(Twitter) :   / arirangtvnews   📣 News Center(YouTube) :    / newscenter_arirangtv   2021-10-27, 17:00 (KST)