Japan's overall fertility rate in 2017 dropped 0.01 percentage point from the previous year to 1.43, down for the second consecutive year, according to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry.
The fertility rate represents the average number of children a woman is expected to give birth to in her lifetime.
The number of babies born last year shrank to 946,060, a record low since the ministry started keeping records in 1899. The data released Friday shows that the recent trend of a declining birthrate has not changed.
In all ages up to 34, the fertility rate dropped from the previous year.
The number of newborns decreased by about 31,000 from the 2016 figure, which dipped below 1 million for the first time. The decrease in the number of babies born to women in the 25-to-34 age bracket accounts for about 60 percent of the total decline.
According to the ministry, the declining fertility rate lies in the fact that the population of women of childbearing age has decreased. The tendency of women to marry later and have children at an older age has also contributed to the decline.
According to an estimate by the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry, the population of women aged 15 to 49 in 2017 dropped 1.3 percent from the previous year. It is likely that the number of newborns will continue to drop in the future as well.
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