China records 1st population fall in decades as births drop
1 year, 11 months ago

China records 1st population fall in decades as births drop

Associated Press  

BEIJING — China’s population shrank for the first time in decades last year as its birthrate plunged, official figures showed Tuesday, adding to pressure on leaders to keep the economy growing despite an aging workforce and at a time of rising tension with the U.S. Despite the official numbers, some experts believe China’s population has been in decline for a few years — a dramatic turn in a country that once sought to control such growth through a one-child policy. It also reported China’s economic growth fell to its second-lowest level in at least four decades last year, although activity is reviving after the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions that kept millions of people at home. The United Nations estimated last year that the world’s population reached 8 billion on Nov. 15 and that India will replace China as the world’s most populous nation in 2023.

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History of this topic

Natural population growth rate lagging, NBS says
1 month, 1 week ago

Natural population growth rate lagging, NBS says

China Daily  

Amid efforts to boost the nation's birth rate, the China Statistical Yearbook 2024 recently released by the National Bureau of Statistics said only eight provincial-level regions recorded a positive natural population growth rate last year. According to the yearbook, the top three regions in terms of natural population growth rates last year were the Xizang autonomous region, the Ningxia Hui …

In just 70 years, Chinese life expectancy doubled to 78.6
1 month, 2 weeks ago

In just 70 years, Chinese life expectancy doubled to 78.6

China Daily  

Wang Xiaoyu China's economic development over the past seven decades has been well documented, but the vast improvement in the health of its people is less so. More than seven decades ago, bubonic plague, cholera, smallpox and a number of infectious diseases would be the biggest threat to my life. According to the National Health Commission, the biggest killers of …

In just 70 years, Chinese life expectancy doubled to 78.6
1 month, 2 weeks ago

In just 70 years, Chinese life expectancy doubled to 78.6

China Daily  

Wang Xiaoyu China's economic development over the past seven decades has been well documented, but the vast improvement in the health of its people is less so. More than seven decades ago, bubonic plague, cholera, smallpox and a number of infectious diseases would be the biggest threat to my life. According to the National Health Commission, the biggest killers of …

Thousands of kindergartens closed across China as birth rate declines sharply
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Thousands of kindergartens closed across China as birth rate declines sharply

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy China’s declining birth rate has …

China to create TV shows and films that promote ‘childbearing culture’
1 month, 3 weeks ago

China to create TV shows and films that promote ‘childbearing culture’

The Telegraph  

Beijing enforced a “one-child” policy until 2015 that limited couples to just one offspring. However, the longstanding one-child policy left a deep impression on China’s culture that has been difficult to shake, and birth rates have remained depressed. China’s birth rate fell to a record low in 2023 and the population shrunk for the second year in a row. UN …

Experts remind recent rise in new births temporary
3 months, 1 week ago

Experts remind recent rise in new births temporary

China Daily  

A newborn baby, whose Chinese zodiac sign is dragon, is seen with the mother at a hospital in Shijiazhuang, North China's Hebei province, Feb 10, 2024. In Guangdong province, the number of births rose by 1.4 percent year-on-year during the first six months, according to Liu Fenghua, deputy head of Guangdong Women and Children Hospital. In Qingdao, Shandong province, the …

Population decline won't hold China back
3 months, 4 weeks ago

Population decline won't hold China back

China Daily  

CAI MENG/CHINA DAILY In recent years, a narrative of demographic doom has descended over China. China's shrinking total population and rising graying demographic pose numerous policy challenges that need to be addressed on an urgent basis, as policymakers grapple with issues ranging from falling fertility rates to decisions by many young couples to forgo the skyrocketing expense of raising children, …

COVID-19 infections not problematic, experts say
4 months, 1 week ago

COVID-19 infections not problematic, experts say

China Daily  

The number of people in China being infected with COVID-19 is fluctuating reasonably and won't be a burden on medical resources or the public, experts said. However, the National Medical Center for Infectious Diseases said the percentage of people catching flu and testing positive for COVID-19 rose from 8.9 percent in early July to 18.7 percent late last month. "COVID-19 …

India’s population to peak at 1.7bn in 2060s, decline afterwards; China and Japan’s population to reduce significantly
5 months, 1 week ago

India’s population to peak at 1.7bn in 2060s, decline afterwards; China and Japan’s population to reduce significantly

Live Mint  

India’s population will most likely peak at 1.7 billion in the early 2060s and is projected to decline after that by 12 per cent. However, according to the World Population Prospects 2024 report released on July 11, the population is expected to decline to 10.2 billion people by the end of this century. The population is currently estimated at 1.45 …

Falling births trigger calls for reallocating preschool resources
8 months, 2 weeks ago

Falling births trigger calls for reallocating preschool resources

China Daily  

Children exercise with basketballs at a kindergarten in Tongren, Guizhou province, on April 1. There were 274,400 kindergartens in China last year, with 40.93 million children enrolled, the Ministry of Education said at a news conference last month. The number of preschool children last year dropped 5.35 million from 2022 and has seen a decrease for three consecutive years, according …

How the world’s falling birthrate is leading to economic catastrophe
10 months, 1 week ago

How the world’s falling birthrate is leading to economic catastrophe

The Telegraph  

“I had always known I didn’t want to have children, but why?” says Ruby Warrington. I realised that all the self-doubt and shame I’d felt about not wanting to have children had come from external pressure and conditioning.” As she researched the problem, she realised she was part of a global trend of women – and men – deciding not …

China stands alone in its attitude towards the pandemic
10 months, 2 weeks ago

China stands alone in its attitude towards the pandemic

Hindustan Times  

The omicron variant of COVID-19 poses enormous challenges for governments. In America, cases are at three times their previous peak in January 2021, hospitals are as busy as they have ever been and deaths have risen by 40% in two weeks to 1,800 per day. Covid In China: Security guards wearing personal protective equipment amid the Covid-19 pandemic sit at …

How China lost the plot on population
11 months ago

How China lost the plot on population

Hindustan Times  

On September 25, 1980, the Communist Party of China released a document, titled “Open Letter to members of the Chinese Communist Party and the Communist Youth League”, advocating the “one-child per couple” policy. “The policy also lightened pressure on peoples’ livelihood, on education, on job hunting and on medical care, and in turn has saved the nation and families the …

China’s population dip is a global concern
11 months ago

China’s population dip is a global concern

Hindustan Times  

China’s population fell by 2.08 million in 2023, a decline for the second straight year, the country’s National Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday. Add the decline of 850,000 in 2022, and it means that the population of the world’s second most populous nation has declined by nearly three million in two years. Given that China’s elderly population, aged 60 and …

Chinese shudders: Fewer people is bad news
11 months ago

Chinese shudders: Fewer people is bad news

Live Mint  

For an economy already caught in a slowdown, Wednesday’s release of China’s population data made it a double whammy. China’s covid toll was estimated at about 11.1 million last year and 10.4 million in 2022. It now faces an adverse demographic turn, with fewer people who can contribute to economic activity even as an elderly bulge adds to its welfare …

China’s Population Decline Accelerated Last Year
11 months ago

China’s Population Decline Accelerated Last Year

Live Mint  

China’s population decline accelerated last year, worsening a demographic gloom that has taken on increasing urgency for Beijing. China ended 2023 with 1.410 billion people, the National Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday, down from 1.412 billion in 2022, when it hit a historic turning point: the first year the population shrank since starvation years in the early 1960s. Another possible …

China's population declines for 2nd year in a row, and so has its workforce; surge seen in elderly people
11 months ago

China's population declines for 2nd year in a row, and so has its workforce; surge seen in elderly people

Hindustan Times  

China has reported a downward trend in its population growth for the second consecutive time in 2023, giving rise to its deepening demographic challenge, which is likely to burden its economy – the second largest in the world. The birth rate saw a record drop of 6.39 births per 1,000 people from 6.77 a year earlier. According to China's National …

China’s population falls for a 2nd straight year as births drop even after end of one-child policy
11 months ago

China’s population falls for a 2nd straight year as births drop even after end of one-child policy

Associated Press  

BEIJING — China’s population fell by 2 million people in 2023 in its second straight annual decrease, as births dropped for the seventh straight year and deaths jumped following the end of COVID-19 restrictions, the government said Wednesday. The lower fertility rate, together with people living longer because of better health care, means China is slowly growing older, something that …

China’s population falls for a second year in a row as COVID restrictions end
11 months, 1 week ago

China’s population falls for a second year in a row as COVID restrictions end

LA Times  

China’s population dropped in 2023 by 2 million people — the second consecutive annual drop as births fell and deaths increased after the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, the government said Wednesday. President Xi Jinping told the new leadership of the All-China Women’s Federation in October that young people need stronger guidance on marriage, parenthood and family, including policies that support …

China: Economic decline, COVID-19 may have reduced population in 2023
11 months, 2 weeks ago

China: Economic decline, COVID-19 may have reduced population in 2023

Firstpost  

After the country abruptly ended severe lockdowns, there was likely a spike in COVID-related deaths in 2023, which caused China’s population to decline for a second consecutive year. Since Beijing abruptly lifted prohibitions in December 2022, the COVID-19 virus spread throughout China’s 1.41 billion people early last year, and demographers predict a substantial increase in the country’s death toll. The …

China on ALERT over likely COVID-19 relapse ahead of winter
1 year, 1 month ago

China on ALERT over likely COVID-19 relapse ahead of winter

India TV News  

COVID-19 alert: Ahead of the winter season, an alert has been sounded across China about the relapse of COVID-19 infections and experts have asked elderly and vulnerable populations to get vaccinated. The Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention showed that a total of 209 new severe COVID-19 cases and 24 deaths caused by COVID-19 were reported across the country …

China Launches Population Survey to Address Alarming Birth Rate Decline
1 year, 1 month ago

China Launches Population Survey to Address Alarming Birth Rate Decline

News 18  

China will begin polling 1.4 billion people on Wednesday in a survey on population changes, as authorities struggle to incentivise people to have more children amid a declining birth rate and the first population drop in more than six decades. China last conducted its once-in-a-decade census in November 2020 which showed it grew at the slowest pace since the first …

China's Fertility Rate Hits Record Low as Concerns Grow Over Population Decline
1 year, 4 months ago

China's Fertility Rate Hits Record Low as Concerns Grow Over Population Decline

News 18  

China’s fertility rate is estimated to have dropped to a record low of 1.09 in 2022, the National Business Daily said on Tuesday, a figure likely to rattle authorities as they try to boost the country’s declining number of new births. The state-backed Daily said the figure from China’s Population and Development Research Center put it as having the lowest …

China needs to build marriage-friendly society
1 year, 5 months ago

China needs to build marriage-friendly society

China Daily  

A family pose for a photo at the Central University of Finance and Economics in Beijing. The declining marriage and fertility rates in China have become issues of greater concern in recent times due to negative population growth, a shrinking workforce and a fast rising aging population. China's demographic trend is one of "low marriage rate, even lower fertility rates …

China needs to build marriage-friendly society
1 year, 5 months ago

China needs to build marriage-friendly society

China Daily  

A family pose for a photo at the Central University of Finance and Economics in Beijing. The declining marriage and fertility rates in China have become issues of greater concern in recent times due to negative population growth, a shrinking workforce and a fast rising aging population. China's demographic trend is one of "low marriage rate, even lower fertility rates …

China's biggest online travel agency to pay employees 1 bn yuan to have kids as population rapidly ages, birth rate fall
1 year, 5 months ago

China's biggest online travel agency to pay employees 1 bn yuan to have kids as population rapidly ages, birth rate fall

Firstpost  

Many Chinese women are reluctant to have more than one or even any children due to the high costs of child-rearing and as the lack of childcare means becoming a parent often entails giving up a career. As China is struggling with an ageing population and low birth rate, the country’s biggest online travel agency Trip.com Group announced on Friday …

China Omits Cremation Data to Hide True Pandemic Death Toll following Lifting of Covid Zero
1 year, 6 months ago

China Omits Cremation Data to Hide True Pandemic Death Toll following Lifting of Covid Zero

News 18  

A Chinese quarterly report on marriage and social welfare for the fourth quarter of 2022 dropped the section highlighting the number of cremations held last winter, indicating that it withheld a key indicator of the pandemic death toll when China faced its largest wave of Covid-19 cases. If the data were released, the quarterly or year-on-year comparison could be used …

Firm course charted for modernization
1 year, 6 months ago

Firm course charted for modernization

China Daily  

Fresh model to counter low birthrate, aging population China's new demographic development model, which prioritizes improving the overall quality of people's lives and the workforce, will help propel modernization, officials and experts said. At the first meeting of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee's Commission for Financial and Economic Affairs early last month, President Xi Jinping stressed that …

China would 'get old before it gets rich', say demographers as marriages slump to record low
1 year, 6 months ago

China would 'get old before it gets rich', say demographers as marriages slump to record low

India Today  

Continuing a steady decline over the past decade, marriages in China dropped to the lowest in 2022, local news outlet Yicai reported on Sunday. According to the data published on the website of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, only 6.83 million couples completed their marriage registrations last year, which was down about 8,00,000 from the previous year. Meanwhile, demographers have …

Firm course charted for modernization
1 year, 6 months ago

Firm course charted for modernization

China Daily  

SONG CHEN/CHINA DAILY Fresh model to counter low birthrate, aging population China's new demographic development model, which prioritizes improving the overall quality of people's lives and the workforce, will help propel modernization, officials and experts said. Zhang Xuyin, deputy head of the China Population and Development Research Center, said, "The meeting sent a strong signal from China's top central leadership …

Firm course charted for modernization
1 year, 6 months ago

Firm course charted for modernization

China Daily  

SONG CHEN/CHINA DAILY Fresh model to counter low birthrate, aging population China's new demographic development model, which prioritizes improving the overall quality of people's lives and the workforce, will help propel modernization, officials and experts said. Zhang Xuyin, deputy head of the China Population and Development Research Center, said, "The meeting sent a strong signal from China's top central leadership …

Covid curbs to blame? Marriages in China slump to historic low, says report
1 year, 6 months ago

Covid curbs to blame? Marriages in China slump to historic low, says report

India TV News  

The marriage rate keeps on dropping, with the nation seeing a notable low in 2022 in China, CNN report said. According to the CNN report, China's population is shrinking while the marriage rate is still at an all-time low. According to the report, which cites a report from China's Ministry of Civil Affairs, 6.8 million couples registered to wed in …

Covid lockdowns to blame? Marriages in China slump to historic low
1 year, 6 months ago

Covid lockdowns to blame? Marriages in China slump to historic low

Hindustan Times  

Marriages in China dropped in 2022 to a record low point, Reuters reported quoting local news outlet Yicai. In 2022, China's population fell for the first time in six decades, marking the start of a long period of decline that could impact the country's economy and the world, experts believe. China's birth rate fell last year to 6.77 births per …

'It is no longer difficult to have a baby': China strives to improve childcare, aims for better-skilled population
1 year, 7 months ago

'It is no longer difficult to have a baby': China strives to improve childcare, aims for better-skilled population

Firstpost  

The government, concerned with China’s rapidly ageing population preceded by its first population drop in six decades, has been working to implement measures to reverse the country’s declining birth rate China’s dwindling birth rate has become a cause of concern among policymakers and the government. The newspaper described population development as a major event linked to China’s “great rejuvenation”. The …

India to overtake China in population by July 1: UN
1 year, 8 months ago

India to overtake China in population by July 1: UN

Hindustan Times  

The United Nations expects India’s population to touch 1.429 billion latest by July 1, which will make it the most populous country in the world for the first time. “What we can say is that China’s population reached its peak last year and started to decline, and that while India’s population is growing, its rate of population growth has been …

UN: India's population will be world's largest by mid-year
1 year, 8 months ago

UN: India's population will be world's largest by mid-year

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy India is on track to …

China's economy expected to rebound as zero-Covid era fades
1 year, 8 months ago

China's economy expected to rebound as zero-Covid era fades

Deccan Chronicle  

BEIJING: China is expected to announce an economic rebound on Tuesday, when Beijing releases its first quarterly GDP figures since abolishing growth-sapping Covid restrictions late last year. Property perils A creeping crisis in the property sector -- which together with construction accounts for around a quarter of China's GDP -- continues to "pose challenges to economic growth", said Rabobank analyst …

Japan: Half of unmarried people under 30 do not want kids
1 year, 8 months ago

Japan: Half of unmarried people under 30 do not want kids

Firstpost  

The number of babies born in Japan in 2022 fell to a new record low for the seventh consecutive year, dropping below 800,000 for the first time since records began in 1899, government data showed late last month. Of the 400 respondents between 18 to 29 years old, 49.4 per cent said they do not want children, the highest percentage …

As China's population dips, effective policies are needed to boost fertility rates
1 year, 8 months ago

As China's population dips, effective policies are needed to boost fertility rates

Firstpost  

Xi Jinping begins his third term as the President of the People’s Republic of China. Various economists had already predicted that China’s one-child policy would bear unfruitful consequences for the country’s economy in the future. Still, in the next ten years, China multiplied its population to such an extent that the Chinese government had to bring stricter policies like One-Child …

DC Edit | Covid isn't over, be cautious
1 year, 9 months ago

DC Edit | Covid isn't over, be cautious

Deccan Chronicle  

After lying low for quite some time, the Covid-19 virus has started rearing its head again in the country. The daily caseload which came down to two digits towards the end of the last year has of late been crossing 1,000; as per the health ministry data, India logged 1,300 new cases, the highest in 140 days, on Thursday while …

Beijing saw more deaths than births in 2022, fresh data reveals
1 year, 9 months ago

Beijing saw more deaths than births in 2022, fresh data reveals

Firstpost  

The decline, according to demographers, was consistent with national patterns and illustrated the economic and social factors that are driving China’s declining birthrate Beijing: Fresh demographic data released by the Chinese government has revealed that the population of the Chinese capital city has decreased for the first time in nearly 20 years. The Chinese city, which is home to over …

Japan’s new birth declines again, plunging to a record low
1 year, 9 months ago

Japan’s new birth declines again, plunging to a record low

Firstpost  

Tokyo: Japan recorded the biggest fall in new births last year as the number of babies dropped below 800,000 for the first time since records began in 1899, government data revealed on Tuesday. The number of deaths last year “hit a record high of 1,582,033, up 129,744.” Since 1973, when the number of new births peaked at around 2.09 million, …

Chinese provinces give 30 days' paid 'marriage leave' to boost birth rate
1 year, 10 months ago

Chinese provinces give 30 days' paid 'marriage leave' to boost birth rate

ABC  

Some Chinese provinces are giving young newlyweds 30 days of paid leave in the hope of encouraging marriage and boosting a flagging birth rate, the Communist Party mouthpiece the People's Daily says. Key points: Last year China recorded its lowest ever birth rate That's due to the one-child policy and surging education costs An experts says there needs to be …

China says 200 million treated for COVID since November, pandemic ‘decisively’ beaten
1 year, 10 months ago

China says 200 million treated for COVID since November, pandemic ‘decisively’ beaten

LA Times  

Commuters during the morning rush hour in the central business district of Beijing on Thursday. China says more than 200 million of its citizens have been diagnosed and treated for COVID-19 since it lifted strict containment measures beginning in November. With 800,000 of the most critically ill patients having recovered, China has “decisively beaten” the pandemic, according to notes from …

China hopes to reverse low birth rate with free fertility treatment
1 year, 10 months ago

China hopes to reverse low birth rate with free fertility treatment

Firstpost  

Beijing: In a bid to address a plummeting birth rate, China is planning to offer free fertility treatments to its citizens under the national insurance scheme. The country’s National Healthcare Security Administration has said that it would extend its coverage to bear the costs of fertility treatments like assisted reproductive technology and in vitro fertilisation for couples trying to conceive. …

China’s economic activity expands for the first time in months as Covid ‘exit wave’ ends
1 year, 10 months ago

China’s economic activity expands for the first time in months as Covid ‘exit wave’ ends

CNN  

Hong Kong CNN — Economic activity in China has expanded for the first time in four months as disruptions caused by the abrupt end of its zero-Covid policy appears to be fading. Last week, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report that China’s current wave of Covid outbreak was “nearing an end.” The official PMI …

China says Covid-19 deaths, severe cases have fallen over 70% since peak
1 year, 10 months ago

China says Covid-19 deaths, severe cases have fallen over 70% since peak

India Today  

Critically ill COVID-19 cases in China are down 72% from a peak early this month while daily deaths among COVID-19 patients in hospitals have dropped 79% from their peak, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday. The CDC said the number of critically ill patients in China peaked on Jan. 4 at 128,000 cases and fell to …

‘In Dec 2022, new Covid infections exceeded 70 lakhs per day’, says China
1 year, 10 months ago

‘In Dec 2022, new Covid infections exceeded 70 lakhs per day’, says China

Live Mint  

China Covid case update: The Chinese authorities have informed that the daily number of Covid cases in the east Asian country had hit a peak of 7 million reported cases per day during December last year. The figures published in China's Centre for Disease Control and Prevention website said, "around December 22, 2022, the number of infected people and the …

China logs nearly 13,000 Covid deaths in a week
1 year, 11 months ago

China logs nearly 13,000 Covid deaths in a week

The Hindu  

China reported nearly 13,000 Covid-related deaths in hospitals between January 13 and 19, after a top health official said the vast majority of the population had already been infected. The death toll came a week after China said nearly 60,000 people had died with Covid in hospitals in just over a month -- but there has been widespread scepticism over …

Explained | Why is China’s population shrinking?
1 year, 11 months ago

Explained | Why is China’s population shrinking?

The Hindu  

The story so far: China’s National Bureau of Statistics announced on January 17, 2023 that the country’s population had fallen by 8,50,000 in the year 2022. Birth rates in China have declined since the 1980s and in the wake of the “one-child policy”, which introduced harsh measures such as forced abortions and high financial penalties. Editorial | Aging factory: On …

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