\n<\/p>\n
(Corrects to show in paragraph 1 that it was a drop of 3.39 million, not 339 \u200bmillion)<\/p>\n
BEIJING, Jan 19 (Reuters) – China’s population fell for a \u200cfourth consecutive year in 2025, dropping by 3.39 million to 1.405 billion, \u200ca faster decline than 2024, official data showed on Monday.<\/p>\n
The total number of births in China dropped to 7.92 million in 2025, its lowest in decades, from 9.54 million \u2060in 2024. The \u200cnumber of deaths rose to 11.31 million from 10.93 million in 2024, figures from China’s \u200dNational Bureau of Statistics showed.<\/p>\n
China’s population has been shrinking since 2022 and is ageing rapidly, and has complicated Beijing’s plan to boost \u200bdomestic consumption and rein in debt, with hundreds of \u200cmillions of people set to leave the workforce at a time when pension budgets are already stretched.<\/p>\n
Marriages in China plunged by a fifth in 2024, the biggest drop on record, with more than 6.1 million couples registering \u2060for marriage, down from 7.68 million \u200bin 2023.<\/p>\n
Marriages are typically a leading \u200bindicator for birth rates in China.<\/p>\n
In the coming year, however, the country may see a slight \u200dtemporary increase \u2060in births, demographers said, after China in May 2025 started allowing couples to get married anywhere in the \u2060country – instead of their place of residence – making the process easier.<\/p>\n
(Writing \u200cby Farah Master in Hong Kong; Editing by \u200cChristopher Cushing and Kate Mayberry)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n