The number of newborns in South Korea hit a new low in November last year, putting 2020 on track to be the year the cumulative number of newborns drops below 300-thousand for the first time.

According to Statistics Korea on Wednesday, 20-thousand-85 babies were born in November, down three-thousand-642, or 15-point-three percent, from a year earlier. The tally is the lowest for the month since the agency began compiling related data in 1981.

The cumulative number of newborns between January and November last year totaled 253-thousand-787, down 27-thousand-661, or nine-point-eight percent, on-year. The cumulative tally for the entire year is projected to fall under 300-thousand, after dropping below 400-thousand in 2017.

The number of deaths in November, meanwhile, totaled 25-thousand-669, up one percent from a year earlier, the highest tally for November since 1983.

The cumulative number of deaths between January and November totaled 278-thousand-186, indicating that the population has likely naturally declined for the first time in 2020.