Bride Prices Are Surging in China

Why is the government struggling to curb them?

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Marriage in China can be mercenary. "Is 380,000 yuan (S$67,000) a lot for a bride price?" a woman in Guangdong asks on a social media site. She is thinking of getting married and wants to know how much her fianc 's family should pay for her hand. The sum she is suggesting is more than seven times her annual wage.

Thousands reply; many say she should demand more. "Sis, life is your own, don't wrong yourself, at least ask for 888,800," says one.

In many countries, the custom of paying a "bride price" has faded as people have become richer. Not in China, where the practice remains deeply entrenched. In some parts of the country, bride prices are an endowment passed by the groom's parents to the newlyweds. In others, it is a compensation paid entirely to the bride's family. In both cases, the amounts involved are going up.