China’s population growth is falling closer to zero as fewer couples have children, government data showed Tuesday, adding to strains on an aging society with a shrinking workforce. They have eased birth limits, but couples are put off by high costs, cramped housing and job discrimination against mothers. Changes in birth limits and other policies “promoted a rebound in the birth population,” Ning said. “We are more concerned about the fast decline in the working-age population,” said Lu Jiehua, a professor of population studies at Peking University. The decline in the working-age population “will place a cap on China’s potential economic growth,” said Yue Su of the Economist Intelligence Unit in a report.

Source: The Hindu May 11, 2021 02:26 UTC