Dec. 24 (UPI) -- Japan's population declined by 500,000 people in 2019 as births have fallen to historic lows and deaths have increased.
The numbers released Tuesday by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare highlight the aging nature of the country's population and how its labor system has resulted in fewer births.
Births fell by 5.9 percent this year to 864,000, dropping below 900,000 for the first time since 1899.
Marriage has also declined by 3,000 year-to-year to 583,000 as many people in Japan put off marriage for career opportunities or fear they may not be able to afford marriage and a child.
Additionally, only 2.3 percent of children were born outside of marriage in Japan compared with about 40 percent in the United States.
Japan also had its highest number of deaths since the end of World War II at nearly 1.4 million.
The country has the world's highest population of people older than 65, as they make up about 28 percent of the population
.
Japan's population has declined every year since 2007 and the country has been making efforts to increase the birthrate by offering incentives for parents to have multiple children and attempting to resolve its labor force shortage by allowing foreigners to work in the country.