Seoul: The number of babies born in South Korea surged nearly 4 percent in May compared to the previous year, marking the steepest growth for May in 14 years, as indicated by government data released on Wednesday. A total of 20,309 babies were born in May, a 3.8 percent increase from 19,567 babies born in the same month last year, according to data compiled by Statistics Korea.
According to Yonhap News Agency, this increase is the sharpest on-year rise for any May since 2011, when the figure climbed by 5.3 percent. May marked the second consecutive month in which monthly births surpassed the 20,000 threshold and the 11th straight month of on-year growth since last July. Between January and May, a total of 106,048 babies were born, representing a 6.9 percent increase from the same period the previous year, the highest growth rate for the first five months of any year since related statistics began in 1981.
The total fertility rate in the country, which measures the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime, rose by 0.02 from the previous year to 0.75 in May. An official at Statistics Korea attributed the rise in births to an increase in marriages and the growing population of women in their early 30s. In South Korea, where having children outside of marriage is uncommon, a rise in marriages often leads to an increase in births.
The number of marriages in May increased by 4 percent on-year to 21,761, marking the 14th consecutive month of growth. This figure is the largest for any May since 2019, when the number of marriages reached 23,045. South Korea has struggled with persistently low birth rates as many young individuals delay or opt out of marriage and parenthood due to economic challenges and evolving social values. To address this, the government has introduced various incentives, including marriage grants and child care subsidies, to promote childbirth.
Meanwhile, the number of deaths in May remained relatively stable from the previous year at 28,510, leading to a natural population decline of 8,202. South Korea has experienced more deaths than births since the fourth quarter of 2019. The data also revealed that the number of divorces in May decreased by 6.4 percent on-year to 7,413.