The number of births, deaths and marriages in Taiwan in the first seven months of the year has declined from the same period last year, the Ministry of the Interior household registration statistics released on Friday showed.
A total of 110,379 babies were born from January to last month, down 7,033, or 6 percent, from the same period last year, the statistics showed.
The Taiwan Association of Obstetrics and Gynecology last month said it was concerned over the low number of births this year.
Should the decline stay steady for the final five months of the year, about 196,000 babies would be born in Taiwan this year, it said.
That would be the lowest number since 2011 and the third-lowest since the early 2000s, when annual birth rates began to decline toward the current norm of between 195,000 and 210,000 a year.
It would also end a three-year streak in which births have been relatively strong. The number of babies born in Taiwan in 2014, 2015 and last year was 210,383, 213,598 and 208,440 respectively, higher than any year since 2004, with the exception of 2012.
Fewer couples wed in the first seven months as marriage registrations from January to last month totaled 80,874, down 4,445 from the same period last year, ministry statistics showed.
A total of 31,000 couples, 529 more than last year, filed for divorce in the first seven months, statistics showed.
If the trend holds to the end of the year, it would mean the number of divorces in Taiwan will rise for the third consecutive year after steadily declining between the mid-2000s and 2014.
The total number of people who died in Taiwan from January to last month was 101,047, down 2,828 year-on-year.
Should the number of deaths fall for the year as a whole, it would break a long-term trend that has seen the number of deaths in Taiwan rise steadily in recent decades as the population has grown and aged.
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