The number of babies born in June has risen for the 12th consecutive month, to post a record growth.

According to Statistics Korea on Wednesday, 19-thousand-953 babies were born in June, posting an on-year jump of nine-point-four percent, the highest growth since the agency began collecting relevant data in 1981.

The total fertility rate, the average number of children born to a woman over her lifetime, rose to zero-point-76, up zero-point-06 from the same month last year.

The cumulative number of babies born in the first six months of this year stood at 126-thousand-and-one babies, marking a seven-point-four percent on-year spike, also posting the highest increase on record.

For the second quarter, the total fertility rate increased by zero-point-05 on-year to zero-point-76, with 60-thousand-979 babies born, up seven-point-three percent from a year earlier.

The state agency attributed the increase to more people getting married, with many of them between the ages of 30 and 34.
 
The number of deaths in June rose one-point-five percent on-year to 27-thousand-270, resulting in a natural population decline of seven-thousand-317.