A recent government report showing a record percentage of people in Japan remain unmarried at age 50 has also revealed major regional disparities, indicating local factors are influencing marriage rates.
Generally higher rates of unmarried men in eastern prefectures and among women in prefectures home to major cities have led some analysts to conclude the trend may be the result of women moving to cities and men staying in rural areas to carry on family businesses in agriculture and other industries.
A National Institute of Population and Social Security Research report released last month showed a record 23.37 percent of men aged 50 in 2015 had never married, compared with a record 14.06 percent of women the same age.