Taiwan's Single Females Hit High Rate of 32.55% in 2013

Some 32.55% of Taiwan's females 15-and- older were single in 2013, much higher than the corresponding 28.52% in 1993, according to a survey by the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS), which carries out such survey once every three or four years, with the latest done in August 2013.

Last year the women chose to stay single mainly for not having met “Mr. Right” and financial worries, with the former causing  57.77% of women aged 25-49 to be spinsters, and the latter 12.51%.

In 1993 some 36.38% of women aged 25-29 were single, which surged to 79.06% by 2013, and the respective percentages for women aged 35-39 being 5.55% and 25.23%.

DGBAS officials attribute the rising rate of spinsterhood to growing popularization of higher education for females, who then join the workforce that tend to delay marriage and enable financial independence that allow women to forego or defer marriage.

The survey shows 55% of women in Taiwan keep their jobs after marriage, much lower than the 83% among singles, which suggests that higher educated women prefer working. The rate of women re-entering the job market due to marriage or pregnancy is 18%.

Currently the regular monthly pay of married women averages NT$32,400 (US$1,030) and about 45% of them are paid lower than NT$30,000 (US$1,000). (JL)