Beijing’s population falls for first time since 2003 as China battles low birthrate

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https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/mar/22/beijings-population-falls-for-first-time-since-2003-as-china-battles-low-birthrate

By Helen Davidson, The Guardian. 

Excerpt: In 2022 there were more deaths than births in the Chinese capital, home to more than 21 million people, resulting in a natural population growth of minus 0.05 per 1,000 people. It is the first time the population has gone backwards since 2003....“Given the high living and education cost and education levels in Beijing, it is very normal that the birthrate of permanent residents is low,” said Xiujian Peng, senior research fellow at the Centre of Policy Studies at Victoria University in Australia. China’s Communist party government is striving to reverse the trend and stave off the economic impacts of an ageing population. ...Last year official data showed China’s birthrate had fallen to 6.77 births per 1,000 people, the lowest on record. ...“It is too difficult to marry and have children to live a stable life,” said one 42-year-old Beijing resident who came to the city from a rural family. ...It is impossible to buy a house in Beijing.”....

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