Childbirths rise for 15th month in Sept - South Korean government data

SEOUL - The number of babies born in South Korea increased for the 15th month straight in September, largely due to an increase in marriages, data showed Wednesday, Yonhap News Agency reported.

A total of 22,369 babies were born in September, up 8.6 per cent from 20,589 babies born the same month last year, according to the data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics.

The number of newborns has been on an upward trend since July 2024.

September's birth figure is the highest for any September since 2020, when 23,499 babies were born.

A total of 191,040 babies were born between January and September, up 12,488 from the same period last year, marking the largest on-year increase for the first nine months of the year since 2007.

Based on the continued growth of births and marriages since the second half of last year, the total number of new births this year is expected to exceed last year's total of 238,317.

The country's total fertility rate, the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime, rose 0.06 from a year earlier to 0.85 in September.

The ministry said the recent rise in births appears to have been influenced by a continued increase in marriages, government policies supporting childbirth and the growth in the population of women in their early 30s.

In South Korea, where childbirth outside of marriage remains rare, an increase in marriages tends to precede a rise in births.

The number of marriages in September jumped 20.1 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) to 18,462, marking the 18th consecutive month of growth.

Both the increase in numbers and the growth rate are the highest ever recorded for any September.

The number of divorces increased 5.7 per cent y-o-y to 7,959 in September, the data also showed.

Meanwhile, the number of deaths in September dropped 3.9 per cent from a year earlier to 28,101, resulting in a natural population decline of 5,732. - BERNAMA-YONHAP