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Life expectancy of Korean babies born in 2024 hits record high of 83.7 years: Data

Published: 03 Dec. 2025, 13:16 Updated: 03 Dec. 2025, 17:59

A newborn baby is seen being tended to by a nurse at a hospital in Goyang, Gyeonggi, on Nov. 26. [YONHAP]

The average life expectancy of Korean babies born in 2024 has reached a record high, according to data released Wednesday.

The average life expectancy at birth last year came to 83.7 years, or 0.2 years longer than the 83.5 years recorded in 2023, according to the data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics.

Life expectancy in Korea has steadily increased since the government began collecting the related data in 1970, when the average life span was just 62.3 years.

However, in 2022, life expectancy fell by 0.9 years, marking the first decline in decades due to the impact of COVID-19, before rebounding in 2023.

"Life expectancy decreased slightly in 2022 due to the effects of the pandemic, but it has since resumed its upward trend," said Park Hyun-jeong, a ministry official. "The expansion of nationwide health care services, which increased the number of hospital visits, also contributed to the change."

For babies born in 2024, boys are expected to live 80.8 years, while girls are expected to live 86.6 years, the ministry said.

The gender gap in life expectancy is 5.8 years, sharply down from 8.6 years in 1985, reflecting a long-term narrowing trend.

The ministry attributed the decline to reductions in male mortality from accidents and liver disease.

Compared with the average among member countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Korean men and women are expected to live 2.3 years and 2.9 years longer, respectively.

Notably, Korean women rank third among 38 OECD countries in life expectancy, following Japan with 87.1 years and Spain with 86.7 years. Men rank 11th.

Yonhap