9월 출생아 수 전년동월대비 2.2% 감소...사망자 수 3.4% 증가

South Korea's population continues to shrink.
In September, data show the number of deaths outnumbered births for an eleventh month in a row.
Births have declined on-year now... every month for nearly five years straight.
The pandemic also resulted in fewer people getting married.
Min Suk-hyen reports.
The number of babies born in South Korea this September has fallen 2-point-2 percent from a year earlier.
According to Statistics Korea, 23-thousand-566 babies were born in September.
Although that figure is slightly up from the previous month, it is still the lowest for any month of September since data was first compiled in 1981.
The number of births has been dipping year-on-year for 58 consecutive months.
One mother says it's because of the cost of raising a child.
"I love my kid. But actually it's not easy to raise children nowadays… so, that's why I have just one. And I don't think I would be able to have another one."
Another reason for fewer babies is that more people are getting married later, so women are older when they first give birth.
"The fall is attributed to a population decline in women in their 30s. The number of marriages has also continued to drop since 2012, which has raised the age of first-time mothers."
The number of marriages has been fairly low. In September, there were only 15-thousand-324 marriages, down 3 percent from a year earlier.
"To overcome these problems of low birth and marriage rates, it is important to create a social environment to support childcare and families, whether it be in the form of more financial support or more policies."
Despite the country's efforts to increase the fertility rate, there have been more deaths than births for 11 straight months.
More than 24-thousand-300 deaths were recorded in September, up 3-point-4 percent from the same month last year.
Min Suk-hyen, Arirang News.