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China’s population falls by 2.08 million to 1.4097 billion in 2023 as births tumble, adding to demographic concerns
- China’s overall population fell by 2.08 million last year, while births declined by 5.6 per cent to 9.02 million
- The world’s second-largest economy is under pressure as its population declines and gets older
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China posts record-low birth rate despite government push for babies
China posts record-low birth rate despite government push for babies
China has reported a population drop for the second consecutive year in 2023 and a record low birth rate, raising concerns over the long-term growth prospects of the world’s second-largest economy.
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The overall population in mainland China fell by 2.08 million last year to 1.4097 billion, down from 1.4118 billion in 2022, according to figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Wednesday.
Slightly over 9 million babies were born in 2023 – the lowest level since records began in 1949 – while about 11 million people died, pushing the death rate to a five-decade high.
The population decline was announced as the Chinese economy officially achieved a 5.2 per cent gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate last year, but the country still faces multivariate threats to sustained development including a property market crisis, weak investor confidence and subdued external demand.
Having once significantly benefited from a demographic dividend, the nation will have to tackle longer-term challenges including fewer working-age people, weaker spending power and a strained social security system amid its demographic shift, researchers warned.
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However, China is positioned to offset some demographic issues due to its robust development of robotics, according to a research note from Huafu Securities published last month.
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