China births risk missing 10m mark for first time under Communist rule

Economic uncertainty, later marriages fuel decline despite end of one-child policy

20220915N China baby

China saw the lowest number of births in 2021 since the formation of the People's Republic in 1949. © Reuters

IORI KAWATE, Nikkei staff writer

BEIJING -- Nearly two dozen Chinese regions have experienced a double-digit percentage drop in births in 2022, Nikkei research shows, putting the country at risk of falling short of the 10 million mark for the full year for the first time since the Communist Party took control.

The declines come as Chinese people worry about income in a slowing economy and delay marriage. Authorities have been trying promote family creation, to little avail.

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