Anchor: Marriages in Korea dropped 40 percent in 10 years according to the latest data. The change comes amid the country’s low birthrate and the changing perceptions of marriage among younger generations.
Emma Sparkes has more. 

Report: The number of marriages in the country plunged 40 percent over the past decade, amid a record low birth rate. 

According to data from Statistics Korea on Sunday, 193-thousand-673 couples tied the knot last year, down from 322-thousand-807 in 2013. 

Though the number of marriages decreased from 2012 until 2022, when it reached 191-thousand-690, the figure rebounded in 2023 by one percent after the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it is uncertain if the rise will continue. 

The sharp fall in the numbers is attributed to a shift in people’s perceptions of marriage.

According to a study by Statistics Korea in 2022, only 15-point-three percent of teenagers believed that marriage was a must, down from 20-point-three percent in 2012.

Additionally, financial burdens were listed as a barrier to marriage. When asked about their reasons for not getting married 32-point-7 percent of those in their 20s, 33-point-7 percent of those in their 30s, and 23-point-8 percent of those in their 40s stated a lack of money to be a problem.

As babies in Korea are overwhelmingly born in wedlock, the decline in marriages is seen to be connected to the dropping birth rate. The number of babies born dropped 47-point-3 percent in the same ten-year period, from 436-thousand-455 in 2013 to 230-thousand last year.