China's National Bureau of Statistics released alarming data on Monday: the birth rate dropped to 5.63 per 1,000 peoplebreaking the previous record from 2023 (6.39). Last year, only one child was born in the Middle Kingdom 7.92 million childrenwhile as many as 11.31 million people died. This means that the population of the country – still the second largest in the world after India – has decreased by 3.39 million people.
What are the birth figures in China in 2025?
Why don't young Chinese people want to start families?
What programs does the Chinese government introduce for families?
How many people over 60 live in China in 2025?
According to CNN, analysts indicate that the disastrous result could have been influenced not only by the crisis, but also by the Chinese zodiac – 2025, the “Year of the Snake”, is considered less desirable for offspring than the earlier “Year of the Dragon”. Experts warn, however, that it is not superstitions that are the main problem, but the persistent downward trend visible since 2016.
Economy on the brink. “Children are super consumers”
Although the Chinese economy grew by 5% in 2025, this success was mainly based on soaring exports, which had to offset weak domestic consumption. — Children are “super consumers”. With birth rates so low, domestic demand in China is likely to remain weak – says demography expert Yi Fuxian, quoted by CNN.
The shrinking workforce and growing army of retirees pose a formidable challenge for Beijing. In 2025, the number of people over 60 years of age increased to 323 million (23% of the population). According to UN forecasts, by the end of the century, as many as half of Chinese people may be over 60 years old, which will affect the country's military ambitions and its ability to compete with the US.
Xi Jinping focuses on robots and bonuses
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has made “population security” a national priority. This is supposed to be the government's response to the labor shortage automation and replacing people with robots. At the same time, the authorities are trying to convince young people to become parents using money:
- annual cash bonuses for families with children under three years of age;
- free public kindergarten program;
- tax breaks and financial assistance when purchasing and renting apartments.
Despite abandoning the strict “one child” policy in 2016, Beijing's efforts have not brought any breakthrough. Young people in China point to specific barriers: high costs of upbringing, difficulties in finding a job and the uneven burden of childcare, which discourages women from motherhood. In addition, there are cultural changes – higher levels of education and new attitudes towards marriage, which make China more similar to countries such as Japan or South Korea.
