China population drops for 4th year

Decline complicates economic strategy

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China's population fell for a fourth consecutive year in 2025 as the birthrate plunged to a record low, official data showed yesterday, with experts warning of further decline.

The country's population dropped by 3.39 million to 1.405 billion, a faster decline than 2024, while the total number of births dropped to 7.92 million in 2025, down 17% from 9.54 million in 2024.

The number of deaths rose to 11.31 million from 10.93 million in 2024, figures from China's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed. China's birth rate dropped to 5.63 per 1,000 people.

Births in 2025 were “roughly the same level as in 1738, when China's population was only about 150 million”, said Yi Fuxian, a demographer at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

China's death rate of 8.04 per 1,000 people in 2025 was the highest since 1968. China’s population has been shrinking since 2022 and is ageing rapidly, complicating Beijing’s plan to boost domestic consumption and rein in debt.

The number of people aged over 60 years old reached about 23% of total population, the NBS data showed.