Population mobility hits 51-year low in October: data
Apartment complexes from Mount Nam in Seoul, Monday / Yonhap
The number of Koreans relocating to new homes fell to the lowest level in 51 years for any October, partly due to the Chuseok holiday and sluggish housing transactions, data showed Wednesday.
Around 442,000 people changed residences last month, down 15.2 percent from a year earlier, according to data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics.
This marks the lowest October figure since 1974, when 410,000 people moved.
Population mobility has generally been declining over the long term due to an aging and shrinking population. Short-term trends are also influenced by housing transactions and the supply of new apartments.
"Population mobility is affected by seasonal factors and, in the short term, by housing-related indicators," a ministry official said. "This year, the extended Chuseok holiday in October appears to have contributed to the larger decline in relocations."
The population mobility rate, which refers to the percentage of people relocating per 100 residents, decreased 1.8 percentage points on-year to 10.2 percent.
By region, Seoul logged a net outflow of 4,705 residents in October, while the western port city of Incheon and Gyeonggi Province reported net gains of 2,512 and 2,495 residents, respectively, the data showed.