The number of newborn babies was 59,961 in the April-June quarter, down 6,168, or 9.3 percent, from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea.
It was the first time since data began to be compiled in 1981 that childbirths fell below 60,000 in the second quarter.
The number has been on the decline since the first quarter of 2016 amid the social trend of delayed marriage and the sliding number of women who are of childbearing age.
The total fertility rate, which gauges the number of babies a woman is expected to have during her lifetime, posted the lowest second-quarter figure of 0.75.
The rate has stayed below 1 for the 13th consecutive quarter since the second quarter of 2019.
The number of deaths stood at 90,406 in the second quarter, up 15,353, or 20.5 percent, from a year earlier.
It was the second-highest quarterly figure, after posting a record high of 103,363 in the previous quarter amid the continued pandemic.
Because of the rapid fall in childbirths and the fast growth in deaths, the country's population reduced by 3,445 in the April-June quarter.
The number of marriages declined 1.1 percent over the year to 47,734 in the second quarter, keeping a downward trend for 14 quarters in a row.
The number of divorces dropped 11.7 percent to 23,156 in the cited quarter.
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