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

The country’s birthrate - 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 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.

South Korea was the only country where the number of childbirths per woman remained below 1 among the 38 member countries of the OECD. As of 2020, the total birthrate among OECD nations averaged 1.59. (Yonhap)