The number of people living in Seoul and its surrounding metropolitan area will peak in 2029, accounting for more than half of South Korea’s total population, government data showed Thursday.
According to the data by Statistics Korea, the number of people living in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province will grow to 26.18 million in 2029 from last year’s 24.89 million.
This represents 50.2 percent of the country’s projected population of about 52 million. The proportion is higher than the 49.6 percent tallied last year.
The capital Seoul is forecast to see its population shrink from 9.93 million in 2013 to 9.16 million in 2040, the data showed.
The population of Gyeonggi Province will peak at 13.47 million in 2032 from last year’s 12.14 million. It is expected to remain at around 13.25 million in 2040.
The administrative capital of Sejong, located in the central part of the country, is expected to steadily grow in population.
The number of people in the city is expected to grow from 120,000 in 2013 to 460,000 in 2040, the data showed. (Yonhap)
