Last Year's Total Fertility Rate 0.92... Lowest Since Statistics Began

Total Fertility Rate High in Sejong and Jeonnam, Low in Seoul and Busan

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] Last year, South Korea's total fertility rate hit a record low of 0.92, the lowest since statistics began.

According to the "2019 Birth Statistics" released by Statistics Korea on the 26th, the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime was 0.92 last year, a decrease of 0.06 (-6.0%) compared to the previous year.

The number of births last year was 302,700, down 24,100 (-7.4%) from the previous year.

Fertility rates decreased in all age groups except those in their 40s compared to the previous year.

The fertility rate by mother's age was highest in the early 30s at 86.2. Fertility rates for women in their late 20s and early 30s decreased significantly by 5.3 (-12.9%) and 5.2 (-5.7%) respectively compared to the previous year.

The average maternal age at childbirth rose by 0.2 years to 33.0 years compared to the previous year.

The average age at first birth was 32.2 years, second child 33.8 years, and third child 35.2 years, increasing by 0.1 to 0.3 years compared to the previous year.

The proportion of mothers aged 35 and older was 33.4%, up 1.6 percentage points from the previous year and 2.2 times higher than 10 years ago.

The number of second births decreased the most, down 11,000 (-9.5%) compared to the previous year.

Compared to the previous year, first births decreased by 8,000 (-4.7%), second births by 11,000 (-9.5%), and third or higher births by 3,000 (-8.9%).

The average duration of marriage at first birth was 2.3 years, an increase of 0.1 years from the previous year. Among first births, 57.1% occurred within two years of marriage, a decrease of 3.5 percentage points compared to the previous year.

The total fertility rate was highest in Sejong (1.47) and Jeonnam (1.23), and lowest in Seoul (0.72) and Busan (0.83).

The number of births decreased in all 16 cities and provinces except Sejong (3.1%) compared to the previous year, and the total fertility rate decreased in all 16 cities and provinces except Gangwon compared to the previous year.

The total fertility rate was highest in Yeonggwang-gun, Jeonnam (2.54), and Haenam-gun, Jeonnam (1.89), and lowest in Jung-gu, Busan (0.50), and Gwanak-gu, Seoul (0.54).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.