November births see highest rise in 14 years
Published: 22 Jan. 2025, 16:14
Updated: 22 Jan. 2025, 19:00
-
- SHIN HA-NEE
- [email protected]
![A nurse tends to newborn babies at a hospital in Incheon on Dec. 26. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/01/22/67fe6ceb-d2ab-4bd8-af60-bff5a99ddc32.jpg)
A nurse tends to newborn babies at a hospital in Incheon on Dec. 26. [NEWS1]
Births in Korea saw their largest jump in 14 years last November, an indication that the post-pandemic surge in marriages may drive Korea's fertility rate's first rebound in nearly a decade.
The number of newborns increased 14.6 percent on year to 20,095, the steepest jump since the 17.5 percent rise recorded in November 2010 and the highest number since the 23,819 births logged in 2019, according to data Statistics Korea released Wednesday.
Births have risen in Korea every month since July and have been growing at a double-digit pace since September when the figure rose 10.1 percent, followed by a 13.4 percent jump in October.
The cumulative number of births between January and November rose by 3 percent year over year to 220,094 last year, Statistics Korea said.

Korea's marriage rate has increased for eight consecutive months since August 2022 after a wave of couples that had delayed their wedding ceremonies due to the Covid-19 pandemic finally tied the knot. The recovery slowed in the latter half of 2023, but regained momentum in 2024.
That trend is becoming increasingly evident in birth statistics, as it takes an average of two years for a couple to give birth after getting married in the country.
If the trend persists through December, Korea's annual fertility rate will likely see its first rebound since 2015.
The total fertility rate — the average number of children expected to be born per woman over her lifetime — stood at 0.76 per woman in the first quarter of 2024 and 0.71 in the second
However, the figure took a yearly upturn to 0.76 in the third quarter, a 0.05 increase from the previous year, marking the quarterly fertility rate's first on-year rebound since the fourth quarter of 2015.
During the January-September period, the total fertility rate was 0.74. In 2023, Korea’s total fertility rate plunged to a record low of 0.72.
Statistics Korea initially projected that the fertility rate would further decline to 0.68 in 2024, but optimism for the first rebound in nine years has been growing.
“If the current level continues into the fourth quarter figure, the total fertility rate may be higher than 0.72,” said Im Young-il, director of population statistics at Statistics Korea.
Births increased in all 17 administrative regions. November marked the second month in a row that births had increased nationwide.
Marriages also saw an on-year increase, with 18,581 couples married in November. This represents an 11.3 percent increase from a year earlier. Marriages have been increasing for eight months in a row since April of last year.
Meanwhile, deaths decreased 3.8 percent on year to 29,219 in November, resulting in a net population decline of 9,124. Korea's population has been shrinking for 61 consecutive months.
BY SHIN HA-NEE [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.
Standards Board Policy (0/250자)