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Japan confirms record low of 811,604 births last year

Population decline nears worst-case estimates as deaths hit postwar high

Japan's total fertility rate fell to 1.30 in 2021, nearing the record low of 1.26 in 2005. (Photo by Wataru Ito)

The number of births in 2021 in Japan fell by 3.5% from the previous year to 811,604, hitting the lowest level on record, according to data released by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare on Friday.

That figure has been falling since 2016, when it first dropped below 1 million, and it is now on track to fall below 800,000.

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