One in three young unmarried Japanese say they don't want to date

One in three unmarried Japanese between the ages of 18 and 34 say they have no interest in dating someone of the opposite sex, according to a new survey.

The finding emerged from the Basic Survey on Birth Trends, recently released by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research under Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, according to the Sankei Shimbun on Wednesday.

The survey was conducted last year, and its results were released Friday.

Among unmarried respondents, 74.0 percent of men and 65.4 percent of women said they had no partner at all — including no boyfriend, girlfriend or fiancé.

The share of single people without a partner has consistently risen since the 2010s.

When asked about their interest in dating, 35.7 percent of men and 35.3 percent of women said they had no particular desire to pursue a romantic relationship with someone of the opposite sex.

The share of unmarried people who said they were in a relationship or engaged peaked in the early 2000s and has since declined gradually. In the latest survey, the figure stood at 19.6 percent for men and 27.8 percent for women.

More than half of teenagers said they had never dated anyone.

Among 18- to 19-year-olds, 45.0 percent of men and 44.2 percent of women said they had dating experience. In the 25-to-29 age group, 57.1 percent of men and 67.2 percent of women said they had dated someone. Overall, 56.6 percent of men and 61.5 percent of women reported having had at least one relationship.

The Basic Survey on Birth Trends is a nationwide study conducted every five years by Japan's Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare to assess the state of marriage, childbirth and child-rearing in the country.

Meanwhile, Japan has long grappled with the social phenomenon of young people — often called "herbivores" — who are disengaged from romance and marriage, a trend linked to prolonged economic stagnation and slow growth.