The number of newlyweds in South Korea shrank nearly 15 percent in December 2016 amid a widespread late marriage trend, government data showed Thursday.
Some 28,400 couples tied the knot in December last year, down 14.7 percent from 33,300 cases tallied in the same month in 2015, according to the data by Statistics Korea.
The monthly figure marked the lowest in December to date, with the government starting to compile such data in 2000.
The decline came as an increasing number of women get married and have children at older ages, or give up on tying the knot and having babies, as a way to work and extend their careers.
Late marriages also lead to a low birthrate, with the country's childbirths reaching a record low of 406,000 in 2016.
Meanwhile, 9,300 couples get divorced in December, down 5.1 percent from a year earlier, while the number of deaths rose 8.3 percent on-year to 25,400, the data showed. (Yonhap)