A survey by South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism revealed that around 6 out of 10 Korean adults did not read a single book in the past year.

According to the survey, only 43 percent of Korean adults read at least one book in 2023. This was a 4.5 percent decrease from the results of the previous survey in 2021, and the lowest it has ever been since periodic surveys on reading began back in 1994.

The decrease in book reading was especially pronounced among people aged 60 and over, with only 15.7 percent having read a book last year. In contrast, 74.5 percent of people aged 19 to 29 read a book last year, although this was still a 3.6 percent decrease from the 2021 survey. The results for people in their 30s and 40s were 68 percent and 47.9 percent, respectively.