A wedding ceremony is in progress in this file photo (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Sept. 7 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea saw an increase in the average first-marriage age last year, with men marrying at an average age of 33.7 and women at 31.3, up from a year ago.
The number of first marriages declined, while the number of single-person households increased.
On Wednesday, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family released a report titled ‘The Life of Men and Women Seen from the 2023 Statistics.’
The number of first marriages totaled 148,000 last year, down 0.6 percent from a year earlier.
The average first-marriage age for men and women rose by 0.3 and 0.2 years, respectively, compared to a year before, reaching 33.7 and 31.3.
Among last year’s marriages, the remarriage rate among women rose by 0.9 percentage points compared to the figure recorded in 2015 to 18.3 percent.
The number of divorces stood at about 93,000 last year, down 8.4 percent year on year. Couples who had been living together for more than 20 years accounted for the largest share, comprising 36.7 percent of all divorces.
The number of single-person households reached 7.4 million last year, up 4.7 percent or 336,000 households from a year ago.
Among men living alone, individuals in their 30s accounted for the largest share at 22 percent, while among women, those in their 60s accounted for the largest share at 18.3 percent.
The number of double-income households stood at 5.85 million last year. Among these households, those in their 40s and 50s accounted for the largest share at 55.2 percent.
The most significant increase in the percentage of double-income households occurred among those aged from 15 to 29, with a growth of 7.3 percentage points across all age groups, rising from 42.8 percent in 2021 to 50.1 percent in 2022.
Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
