South Korea’s total population rebounded in 2023 owing to a double-digit growth in foreign residents, statistical office data showed Monday.

The total population added 0.2 per cent, or 82,000, from a year earlier to 51,775,000 in November last year, according to the 2023 census by Statistics Korea.

Foreign residents, who stayed here for at least three months, advanced 10.4 percent to 1,935,000 in the cited period.

Following the COVID-19 pandemic, more foreigners arrived in South Korea last year amid the government’s expanded working visa programs for foreigners.

Local residents fell 0.2 per cent to 49,839,000 last year due to the lower birth rate and the aging population, keeping a downward trend for the third straight year.

The Asian country has struggled with a chronically low birth rate as young couples delayed having babies due to economic difficulties such as high housing prices and stubborn unemployment.

The working-age population aged 15-64 decreased 0.4 per cent over the year to 36,546,000 in 2023, accounting for 70.6 per cent of the total population.

The proportion of the working-age population continued to go down since 2018.

The elderly population aged 65 and above mounted 5.1 per cent to 9,609,000 last year, but those aged 14 and lower dropped 4.1 per cent to 5,619,000.

The ageing index, or the number of those aged 65 and older per 100 people aged 14 and younger, jumped to 171.0 in 2023 from 113.9 tallied in 2018.

The total number of households stood at 22,728,000 in 2023, up 1.5 per cent compared to the previous year.

Households in Seoul and its surrounding metropolitan area were estimated at 11,304,000 in 2023, or 49.7 per cent of the total number of households.

The average number of family members per household shrank 0.03 over the year to 2.21 last year.

The number of single-member households increased 4.4 per cent to 7,829,000 last year, making up the highest 35.5 per cent of the total households.

The proportion of one-person households continued to rise from 28.6 percent in 2017 to 30.2 per cent in 2019, 33.4 per cent in 2021 and 35.5 per cent in 2023.

The continued expansion in single-person households resulted from the ageing population and the growing reluctance among the younger generation to get married.

Those in their 20s and younger made up the highest 18.6 per cent last year, followed by those in their 30s and 60s, both with 17.3 per cent.

Those in their 80s and older accounted for 8.1 per cent of the total one-person households, while those in their 70s took up 11.0 per cent last year.

(Xinhua/NAN)