Asia-Pacific

S Korea's population stands at 48.58m in 2010

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-05-30 16:14

SEOUL - South Korea's population stood at 48.58 million in 2010, a 2.8 percent jump compared to five years ago, according to census data released by Statistics Korea on Monday.

The census conducted every five years showed that the country's population grew an average of 0.5 percent annually from 2005 through 2010. In 2005, the population amounted to 47.28 million, according to the data.

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The country's male population rose 2.3 percent to 24.17 million from 2005 to 2010 and the female population increased 3.2 percent to 24.41 million, the data showed.

The data said that the number of people over age 65 added 24.3 percent to 5.42 million over the cited period, accounting for 11.3 percent of the total population.

South Korea entered into an aging society, with more than seven percent of its population in every city and province aged 65 years old and over, according to the data.

Foreigners living in South Korea climbed a whopping 148.2 percent to 590,000 from 2005 to 2010, the data said.