China's demographic time bomb: China faces 'largest absolute population loss', says UN

The United Nations has raised the alarm on the drastic population decline in China by the end of this century, predicting it could lose more than half of its population.

According to the summary of results from the United Nations' 2024 World Population Prospects, China's population could return to a size comparable to the late 1950s as it could lose 786 million people between 2024 and 2054, followed by Japan and Russia with 21 million and 10 million, respectively. According to the report, Hong Kong and South Korea had the lowest fertility levels in 2024. The report further notes that the world population would presumably peak in the mid-2080s with a population of around 8.2 billion.

China's population dropped for the second year in a row, falling to 1.4097 billion. Only 9.02 million births were reported in the country in 2023, marking the lowest level since records began in 1949. Beijing recently established a vast data-monitoring system to manage this glaring demographic trend. Economists are particularly concerned about the impact on China's growth. Population decline means fewer workers as more people retire. This can impact the government's revenue sources and increase spending on social services.

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China's Economist Intelligence Unit had earlier predicted that the country's population would plunge by 20 million by 2035, further impacting long-term economic prospects. Meanwhile, Chinese households are expected to increase to 550 million by 2035 and the average family size could drop to 2.3 people from 2.62 people.