The number of couples that got married in South Korea last year reached some 220-thousand, up 14-point-eight percent from the previous year.

Data from Statistics Korea showed in terms of annual growth, the number of marriages recorded in 2024 marked the largest increase since 1970, when related statistics were first compiled.

Marriages had been on the decline since 2012, but began showing a turnaround in 2023.

The national statistical office pointed to the relatively high number of children born in the early 1990s and the effect of them entering their early 30s, the main marriage age group, overlapping with a surge in marriages that had been postponed due to COVID-19 as reasons for the rebound.

It also noted that in 2024, a survey of young people found that 52-point-five percent of respondents viewed marriage positively.

Figures also showed the number of divorces dropped one-point-three percent on-year to 90,000.