Japan's government statistics show that both the fertility rate and the number of births continued to drop in 2020 for a fifth consecutive year.

The health ministry says the rate was 1.34 last year, down 0.02 points from a year earlier. The index represents the average number of children per woman.

The number of babies born last year was 840,832, down 24,407 from the previous year. That is a record low since statistics began in 1899.

Ministry officials say the impact of the coronavirus pandemic has likely not been fully reflected yet, considering the time lag between conception and birth.

They noted, however, that the decline in the number of births has worsened since last December.