China’s low-fertility trap
The one-child policy may be gone, but its harmful effects linger
A SMALL NUMBER should haunt the sleep of China’s leaders: 1.1. That is the number of children that, given prevailing trends, each Chinese woman is expected to have on average during her child-bearing years. China’s total fertility rate (TFR), to use the demographers’ term, has fallen far below the 2.1 children needed for a stable population. Sure enough, in 2023 China’s population declined for the second year in a row.
Explore more
This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “China’s low-fertility trap”
From the March 23rd 2024 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionDiscover more
Wegovy hits the People’s Republic, at last
China mainlines “Musk’s miracle medicine”, at a fraction of the cost in America
China’s government is badgering women to have babies
It is testing an expanded pro-natalist playbook
China suffers eruptions from its simmering discontents
Amid random violence and increasing protests, fears mount for social stability
Trump, trade and feeding China’s pigs
As a trade war looms, China looks to cut its reliance on America
Helping America’s hawks get inside the head of Xi Jinping
China’s leader is a risk-taker. How far will he go in confronting America?
Snuffing out the flame of freedom in Hong Kong
Dozens of pro-democracy activists are thrown into jail for up to a decade
