In February this year, the number of newborns was 20,035, an increase of 3.2% from a year earlier (19,412), the Statistics Korea reported on the 23rd. For February, the birth rate change marked its first positive record since 2014. Additionally, the increase exceeded the previous high of 0.3%. Statistics Korea identified the increase in marriages as a reason for this positive trend.
The year-on-year change in the number of newborns in February has been on a downward trend since recording 6.4% in 2012. In 2013, it was minus (-) 9.8%, and it turned positive with 0.3% in 2014, but has continuously decreased since then. After the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, it fell to -11.5%, and recently showed a decline of around -3% to -2%.
In February this year, the number of newborns increased in nine cities, including Seoul and Busan, while it decreased in eight cities, including Gwangju and Sejong. Consequently, the total fertility rate for February was 0.82, an increase of 0.05 from the same month the previous year.
Statistics Korea believes that the increase in the number of newborns is due to the resumption of marriages that were postponed because of COVID-19. The number of marriages rose from 190,160 in 2022 to 222,412 last year. In February this year, it recorded a sharp increase of 14.3% compared to the same month the previous year, with 19,370 cases. This was thanks to the increase in marriage cases across all provinces. The number of divorces in February was 7,347, a 0.1% decrease compared to February last year.
In February this year, the number of deaths was 30,283, an increase of 1.3% compared to the same month the previous year. The number of deaths increased in ten cities, including Busan and Daegu, while it decreased in seven provinces, including Seoul and Gwangju. As a result, the number of deaths surpassed that of newborns, leading to a natural population decrease of 10,248.
Meanwhile, according to the 'March domestic population movement statistics' released by Statistics Korea on the same day, the number of domestic movers last month was 549,000, a decrease of 2.6% from the same month last year. This figure is the lowest since 1974.
A Statistics Korea official noted, "This is due to the impact of the population decline and aging," adding, "The increase in housing sales and construction of dwellings has slowed down, leading to less mobility." By city, Incheon (3,605), Seoul (1,306), and Chungcheongnam-do (927) experienced a net influx, while Gwangju (2,502), Busan (2,012), and Daegu (1,573) saw net outflows.
Throughout the first quarter, the number of movers decreased by 3.4% year-on-year to 1,753,000. Incheon (11,091), Seoul (6,129), and Gyeonggi (5,588) experienced a net influx, while Gwangju (4,945), Gyeongnam (4,729), and Gyeongbuk (3,524) saw net outflows. Among age groups, the highest number of movers was in the 20s at 452,000, followed by the 30s at 362,000.