S.Korea's one-person households to reach 37.3 pct of total by 2047

Source: Xinhua | 2019-09-19

South Korea's one-person household was expected to reach more than one third of the total households by 2047 amid the rapidly-aging population, statistical office data showed Wednesday.
The proportion of single households was forecast to hit 37.3 percent of the total, or 8.32 million, in 2047 from 28.5 percent, or 5.583 million, in 2017, according to the estimate by Statistics Korea.
The single-member households were predicted to increase mainly among the elderly population. Those aged 65 or higher was expected to account for 48.7 percent of the total one-member households in 2047.
The ratio of husband-and-wife households, which have no child, was forecast to reach 21.5 percent of the total, or 4.794 million, in 2047 from 15.8 percent, or 3.093 million, in 2017.
The combined portion of the single and the husband-and-wife households was projected to take up 58.8 percent of the total in 2047 from 44.3 percent in 2017.
Meanwhile, the portion of multiple-member households, which include a couple and children, was forecast to drop to 16.3 percent of the total, or 3.638 million, in 2047 from 31.4 percent, or 6.15 million, in 2017.
Despite the overall reduction, the number of multiple-member households, of which the couple is aged 60 or higher, was expected to increase for the next three decades as children would refrain from, or delay, getting married.