Korea faces demographic challenges from low birthrates and rapid aging. Yonhap

Korea's total fertility rate hit a record low last year as the number of childbirths continued to fall, data showed Wednesday, underscoring the country's gloomy demographic situation.

The country's total fertility rate ― the average number of children a woman bears in her lifetime ― came to 0.81 child in 2021, down from 0.84 the previous year, according to the data from Statistics Korea.

It was the lowest since the statistics agency began compiling related data in 1970. Last year also marked the fourth straight year that the number was below 1.

Korea was the only country where the number of childbirths per women remained below 1 among the 38 member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). As of 2020, the total fertility rate among the OECD nations averaged 1.59.

Korea is grappling with a chronic fall in childbirths as many young people delay or give up on getting married and having babies amid an economic slowdown and high housing prices, coupled with changing social norms about marriages.

Last year, the number of newborns hit a record low of 260,600, down 11,800 from the previous year, the data showed. The annual number of childbirths fell below 300,000 for the second straight year.