South Korea's total fertility rate, or the average number of children born to a woman over her lifetime, in the first quarter dropped to an all-time low of zero-point-76 for the three-month period.

According to Statistics Korea on Wednesday, 19-thousand-669 babies were born in March, down seven-point-three percent from a year earlier. It is the first time that the tally for March has fallen below 20-thousand since the agency began compiling related data in 1981.

There were 60-thousand-474 babies born in the first quarter, down six-point-two percent year-on-year, with the total fertility rate also dropping to zero-point-76, a decline of zero-point-06. While the first quarter normally posts the largest number of births in the year, it is the first time for the total fertility rate for the period to fall under zero-point-eight.

An official at the agency cited a growing number of people in their 30s deciding against marriage or opting not to have children even if they do marry.
 
Meanwhile, the number of deaths in March jumped seven-point-six percent year-on-year to 31-thousand-160, recording a natural population decline for the 53rd consecutive month since November 2019.