SEOUL, June 15 (Yonhap) — Monthly pension payments from the National Pension Fund surpassed the 4 trillion won (US$2.9 billion) mark in February, marking the first time monthly outflows crossed the threshold, due to the country’s aging population, data from its operator showed Sunday.
The monthly pension payments to subscribers of the public fund reached 4.02 trillion won in February, up 77.5 billion won from the previous month, according to data from the National Pension Service.
If this trend holds, the pension fund’s accumulated payments are expected to reach 50 trillion won this year.
The fund’s pension payments have been on the rise, as the country’s aging population has led to increases in both the number of pension recipients and the size of their pension.
Annual pension payments reached 11.5 trillion won in 2012, exceeding 10 trillion won for the first time. The figure nearly doubled to 20.7 trillion won in 2018, then rose further to 34 trillion won in 2022 and 43.7 trillion won last year.
Since the public fund was established in 1988, it had taken 24 years to surpass the 10 trillion won mark in annual payments, but only six, four and two years to reach 20, 30 and 40 trillion won, respectively.
As of 2024, the number of eligible pension recipients reached 7.37 million, up 550,000 from the previous year.
In contrast, the public pension system has seen a steady decline in the number of contributors amid low birth rates, with contributors totaling 21.98 million in 2024, down from 22.38 million in 2023 and 22.5 million in 2022.
Contributions to the public fund still exceed its payments, but the balance is expected to reverse soon if the trend continues, the data showed.
This file photo shows a local office of the National Pension Service. (Yonhap)
pbr@yna.co.kr
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