In 2015, China welcomed almost 16.5mn babies. A decade later, that figure has more than halved to just under 8mn — a striking example of a demographic crisis that is poised to have long-term economic and societal consequences in the world’s second-largest economy.
While China is not alone in grappling with an ageing population, particularly in east Asia, the pace of ageing has been accelerated by the legacy of the “one-child” policy, a weak economy and a growing divide between young men and women’s prospects and intentions.
The “shockingly low number” of new births meant that the “total population will shrink much faster and will become more dominated by the elderly than even in recent pessimistic forecasts”, said Ernan Cui, an expert in Chinese demographics at the consultancy Gavekal Research.