China’s population fell for a fourth consecutive year ‍in 2025 as the birthrate plunged to a record low, official data showed on Monday (January 19, 2026), with experts warning of further decline. 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 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 around 23% ⁠of the total population, the NBS data showed. China’s urbanisation rate stood at 68% in 2025, the data showed, from about 43% in 2005.

Source: The Hindu January 19, 2026 03:24 UTC