Foreign
South Korea’s childbirth kept a record-low trend in August, fueling worry about a so-called demographic cliff, statistical office data showed on Wednesday.
The number of newborn babies was 22,472 in August, down 7.8 percent from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea.
It marked the lowest August reading since data began to be compiled in 1981. The record-low trend continued for 53 straight months.
For the first eight months of this year, the childbirth reached 188,202, down 9.5 percent compared to the same period of last year.
The continued slide in newborns came amid the growing social trend of delayed marriage and the falling number of women who are of childbearing age. The number of marriages was 15,033 in August, down by 18.0 percent from a year earlier.
It was the record-low figure as the COVID-19 pandemic discouraged people from participating in social gatherings such as the wedding ceremony. The number of divorces declined from 6.6 percent to 8,457 in the month.
The record-low childbirth raised concern about the demographic cliff, which refers to a sudden drop in the heads of households eventually leading to a consumption cliff. The number of deaths was 25,284 in Aug. up 6.7 percent from a year earlier.
Because of the fast fall in childbirth and the rising death, the country’s population kept skidding for 10 straight months through August. (Xinhua/NAN)
– Oct. 28, 2020 @ 11:55 GMT |
Tags: South Korea’s childbirth keeps record-low trend in August
