April birth growth hits 34-year high, marriage rate sees biggest rise in 6 years

The month of April recorded yet another tangible rise in the birth of babies here in South Korea.

Our Shin Se-byuck covers the latest findings.

South Korea recorded its sharpest April increase in births in 34 years.

Data from Statistics Korea released on Wednesday show that 20-thousand-717 babies were born in April 2025, up 8-point-7 percent from a year earlier marking the highest year-on-year increase for April since 1991.

With this, the number of newborns has seen on-month increases for ten consecutive months since July last year.

This pushed the total fertility rate to point-7-9,.. up point-0-6 points on-year.

It also marks four straight months of gains in the average number of children a woman is expected to have.

Marriage figures also stayed on an upward trend.

A total of 18-thousand-923 couples got married in April, up 4-point-9 percent from the previous year.

This marks the 13th consecutive month of growth as well as the steepest April rise in six years.

Divorces, meanwhile, fell by 5-point-2 percent over the same period.

One expert, however, cautioned that the recent uptick may be temporary, driven more by demographic timing than by any meaningful change in social or economic conditions.

"There are three key factors behind the trend: delayed marriages and childbirths due to the pandemic, and a large cohort currently in their prime age for marriage and childbirth. But this doesn't signal a fundamental shift in social conditions."

To see lasting change, the expert stressed the need to address broader challenges, including housing, education, and job stability.

Meanwhile, 28-thousand-785 deaths were reported in April, up point-8 percent from a year earlier.

As a result, the population shrank by 8-thousand-68, marking the 66th consecutive month of natural decline.

Shin Se-byuck, Arirang News.