REUTERS
January 17, 2025 at 13:52 JST
Elderly people walk with children at a park in Beijing on Jan. 12, 2024. (REUTERS)
HONG KONG--China’s population fell for a third consecutive year in 2024, with the number of deaths outpacing a slight increase in births, and experts cautioning that the downturn will worsen in the coming years.
The National Bureau of Statistics said the total number of people in China dropped by 1.39 million to 1.408 billion in 2024, compared with 1.409 billion in 2023.
Friday’s data reinforces concerns that the world’s second largest economy will struggle as the number of workers and consumers declines. Rising costs from elderly care and retirement benefits are also likely to create additional strains for already indebted local governments.
China’s birth rates have been falling for decades as a result of the one-child policy China implemented from 1980 to 2015 as well as rapid urbanization.
As in neighboring Japan and South Korea, large numbers of Chinese people have moved from rural farms to cities, where having children is more expensive.
A 12.4% rise in marriages in 2023 - many delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic - meant there was a temporary rebound in births in 2024, demographers said. The number is expected to fall again in 2025.
Annual visitor numbers expected to exceed 35 million
December 18, 2024
Kansai airports log profit surge thanks to record tourist numbers
December 12, 2024
Record-breaking 3.29 million tourists visited Japan in July
August 27, 2024
Anti-nuke group warns active nuke warheads on the increase
June 7, 2024
Number of births falls by 6.4% in Japan in first quarter of 2024
May 28, 2024
Japanese again named as holders of one of world’s best passports
January 26, 2024
A peek through the music industry’s curtain at the producers who harnessed social media to help their idols go global.
A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry
Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors.
Cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.
A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II
