South Korean adults spent less time reading books last year, in contrast to children, a survey said.

According to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s latest survey on the reading habits of  Koreans, adults read an annual average of 7.5 books in 2019, marking a decline of 1.9 books from 9.4 books read in 2017.

On the other hand, elementary, middle and high school students read an average of 40.7 books annually, up 6.4 books from 34.3 books recorded two years ago, the survey found.

The ministry said the survey was conducted on 6,000 people older than 19 years of age and 3,000 elementary and secondary school students nationwide from October 2018 to September 2019. (Yonhap)