Seoul, Aug 28 : The number of babies born in South Korea rose for the first time in more than eight years in the second quarter of 2024, data showed on Wednesday, as the country is grappling with its ultra-low birth rate.

A total of 56,838 babies were born in the April-June period, up 1.2 per cent from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by Statistics Korea, Yonhap news agency reported.

It was the first time since the fourth quarter of 2015, when the number went up 0.6 per cent.

The increase came as the number of newborns marked on-year growth for the first time since September 2022 in April by going up 2.8 per cent, and the figure climbed 2.7 per cent on-year in May in line with the growth in the number of newly married couples after the Covid-19 pandemic.

In June, however, the number of newborns fell 1.8 per cent to 18,242, which marked the lowest figure for any June.

The total fertility rate, which means the average number of expected births from a woman in her lifetime, came to 0.71 in the second quarter of 2024, unchanged from a year earlier. It was a record low.

The figure was far below the 2.1 births per woman needed to maintain a stable population without immigration.

The number of deaths inched up 1.1 per cent on-year to 84,147 in the second quarter, and the population, accordingly, declined by 27,309.

It has also outpaced that of newborns since the fourth quarter of 2019.

The number of couples getting married advanced 17.1 per cent on-year to 55,910 in the April-June period of 2024. It was the second-ever fastest growth.

The number of couples getting divorced shed 2.7 per cent on-year to 22,831, the data showed.

South Korea is experiencing grim demographic changes, as many young people opt to postpone or give up on getting married or having babies in line with changing social norms and lifestyles.

Many have also pointed to high home prices and a tough job market as major reasons.

South Korea is expected to be a highly aged society by 2072 as the median age will increase to 63.4 by the time from 44.9 in 2022, and the population will tumble to around 36.22 million in 2072 from last year's 51.73 million.

/IANS