KPL
(KPL/KYODO) The number of children born in Japan in 2024 fell from a year earlier to 720,988, marking the ninth consecutive year of record lows, health ministry data showed Thursday.
(KPL/KYODO) The number of children born in Japan in 2024 fell from a year earlier to 720,988, marking the ninth consecutive year of record lows, health ministry data showed Thursday.
The figure including foreigners, down by 5 percent from the previous year, comes as more people choose to marry later in life and there is increased anxiety over child-rearing due to the higher cost of living.
The number of deaths in 2024 increased by 28,181 to a record 1,618,684, and the natural decrease, subtracted from the number of births, stood at a record 897,696, according to preliminary data released by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
Births decreased in all of Japan's 47 prefectures compared to the previous year, declining at a faster pace than government projections and showing no signs of abating.
The number of couples tying the knot stood at 499,999, up by 10,718 from 2023, when the number fell below 500,000 for the first time in 90 years. Marriage numbers have been significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The number of babies born to Japanese nationals in 2024, to be released by the ministry around June, is expected to fall below 700,000 for the first time amid the downward trend.
The National Institute of Population and Social Security Research had not projected births to drop below 700,000 until 2038.
KPL
