[위클리오늘] Population Cliffs Visible, “Birth and Marriage Record Lowest”

[위클리오늘=강동우 기자] In January, the number of births fell by 1,700 compared to the previous year, recording a record low.

In addition, the natural increase in population has been negative for 15 months, and the birth rate for the first time since the preparation of statistics has fallen to 5, and the phenomenon of population decline is accelerating, raising concerns.

According to the’January Population Trend’ released by the National Statistical Office on the 24th, the number of births in January decreased by 6.3% (1,675) from the same month of the previous year to 25,03.

Accordingly, the crude birth rate, which means the number of births per 1,000 people, was 5.7. In particular, it is the first time since the statistics related to the year 2000 that it fell to 5 as of January.

The number of births has been steadily decreasing since 2015 and has been hitting a record low every month since 2016.

In addition, when looking at the increase and decrease of births by province, Gwangju and Gangwon increased by 38 and 16 respectively compared to the same month of the previous year, but all regions showed a decrease.

In particular, the number of births in Seoul and Busan was 4430 and 1355, respectively, decreasing by 276 and 216 compared to the same month of the previous year, showing the largest decline.

In addition, the number of deaths in January was 27,181, a decrease of 4.3% (1235) from the previous year, and the mortality rate, which means the number of deaths per 1,000 population, was 6.2.

Amidst the declines in most regions, it was highlighted that the only area in Ulsan decreased by 47 compared to the previous year.

For this reason, the natural increase in the population, minus the number of deaths from the number of births, decreased by 2177. This decline has been occurring since November 2019.

In addition, the number of marriages in January was 16,280, a decrease of 17.9% (3539) compared to the same month of the previous year, and the number of divorces was also 8373, a decrease of 5.2% (457) during the same period.

“The number of births and marriages is declining, and the number of deaths is increasing due to the aging population, so it is expected that the natural decline of the population will continue this year,” said Kim Soo-young, head of the Population Trend Division of Statistics Korea.

“The number of people in their 30s, the main marriage age group, is declining, and the rate that they think it’s good to get married is also decreasing.” “As economic conditions change, the marriage rate is declining, and marriages are delayed due to Corona 19. It had an effect,” he analyzed.