Most couples with two incomes are in their 40s

More than half of married couples who live together in their 40s have two incomes as their spending continues to rise largely because of their children’s education, a report by Statistics Korea showed yesterday.

The survey of 11.78 million households with married couples nationwide, which was conducted in 2013, found that 5.05 million households, or 42.9 percent, had dual incomes.

Households with a single breadwinner made up 42.2 percent of the total. Those with no jobs took up 14.9 percent.

By age group, the largest percentage of households with dual incomes was couples in their 40s. The report said 50.8 percent of those households had two incomes.

According to analysis by the agency, parents in their 40s spend so much money on their children’s education that they tend to work more than parents in other age groups.

In the 50s group, 49.9 percent of households had dual incomes.

By industry, couples who work in agricultural and fishery showed the highest percentage of dual incomes. As much as 83 percent of households with employees in the sector had two incomes.

In the wholesale/retail, dining and accommodation industry, 58.4 percent of households had dual incomes.

The report said that couples in those industries often work together.

According to the study, dual-income households were mostly located in provincial areas.

In Jeju, dual-income households accounted for 60.9 percent. In South Jeolla, 55.7 percent of the province’s households had two incomes, the survey showed.

In Seoul, only 36.7 percent of the city’s households, including married couples, had dual incomes.

Ulsan, the city with the highest per capita GDP, showed the fewest dual-income households, with 36.3 percent of the total.

BY SONG SU-HYUN [ssh@joongang.co.kr]