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China's population

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China's population
China's top decision-making body announced in late October that it would relax the one-child policy, a controversial birth control measure Beijing introduced officially in the early 1980s to curb population growth. But demographers say the easing in the rules will not do much to rebalance China's ageing population.
A wedding takes place in Kaizhou city, Chongqing, in 2014. As long as a preference for sons exists, daughters will continue to be seen as good for little more than marrying a man and bearing his children. Photo: Shutterstock
China society

Opinion | Why women in China are still at risk of abduction and forced marriage

The latest incident has exposed many failings in local authorities’ work in a country where a mindset of favouring sons over daughters still exists.

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China consumption

Improving migrant workers’ lives key to boosting Chinese consumption: HSBC

Crime in China

Why is surrogacy in China proving so difficult to ban despite the crackdown?

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China birth rate

Shanghai waives all out‑of‑pocket expenses for maternal care

The city’s fertility rate last year was just 0.66 – well below the 2.1 needed to ensure a stable population.

A staff member cares for newborn babies at a postpartum care centre in Shanghai. Photo: AFP
Mainland China

My Take | Why China’s shrinking population may be a blessing, not a curse

Research co-authored by Nobel laureate Daron Acemoglu finds labour shortages can spur, rather than slow down, productivity and growth.

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China's ageing population

In Focus | China’s elderly need long-term care. Will a new insurance scheme provide it?

The central government has announced plans to provide nationwide coverage by 2028, but uneven regional development is a major hurdle.

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China birth rate

Even in the fertility heartland, China can’t stop its birth rate from falling

Economic pressure is outweighing traditional value of having large families in the Chaoshan area of eastern Guangdong.

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A woman and child at Zhongshan Park in Guangdong province. Photo: Shutterstock Images
China economy

China needs 600% child subsidy rise to prevent deeper birth crisis: scholars

China’s fertility rate could soon fall to world’s lowest unless action is taken, as current subsidies are ‘a drop in the bucket’, scholars warn.

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China's ageing population

Letters | Solution to Asia’s ageing workforce could be sitting at home retired

Readers discuss second-career pathways for older professionals, and why Indonesia and China should innovate together.

China jobs

Record graduate influx lifts China’s youth jobless rate to 17.9% in July

An estimated 12.7 million university graduates have entered the job market this summer.

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People line up at career guidance booths at a job fair in Beijing in March. Photo: Reuters
China birth rate

China’s marriage rate is still declining. What does it spell for the economy?

Fewer weddings, rising divorces and plunging birth rates risk exacerbating the fallout from a rapidly ageing population.

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A newly-wed couple pose for a photo with their marriage certificates at a marriage registration office on May 20 in Chengdu, Sichuan province, China. Photo: Getty Images
China society

Opinion | China’s baby boom depends on gender equality, not cash handouts

To arrest its falling birth rate, China must ensure women do not have to choose between motherhood and the lives they have built.

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China economy

Opinion | China’s economic shift may hinge on what migrant workers do next

Where migrant workers go, what sectors they serve and how many stay employed will shape whether productivity gains go beyond the most advanced sectors.

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China jobs

Could Filipinos benefit as China opens door to foreign domestic work schools?

Move designed to boost supply and quality of home services as Beijing seeks to create more jobs in a rapidly ageing society.

An instructor teaches trainees to organise clothing at a domestic services training centre in Qingdao, Shandong province, on July 21. Photo: Xinhua
Health in China

China’s five-year public health blueprint

Officials target raising life expectancy to 80 years by 2030 in national health blueprint under 15th five-year plan.

Photo: Shutterstock
China consumption

Price of parenting: the household maths giving China’s consumers pause

Falling property wealth, job insecurity and sky-high childcare costs are forcing middle-class families to aggressively scale back consumer spending.

China economy

Opinion | To prosper, China must become a magnet for international students

China must seize the opportunity to become a global education hub. Reform of its universities should begin now.

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China's ageing population

China’s state agencies are hiring retirees as the workforce rapidly ages

Universities, hospitals and government departments are actively recruiting retired former workers to cope with rapid demographic changes.

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Chinese government departments are increasingly hiring retirees as society ages rapidly. Photo: EPA-EFE
China's economic recovery

China’s population ageing seen as ‘inevitable’ by 2050. Why push more births?

Raising the fertility rate above 1.3 still remains crucial to preventing a far worse scenario later in the century, analysts say.

China’s Communist Party

Will reluctance from local government undermine reforms to China’s hukou system?

At present, millions of workers cannot register in the cities where they work, limiting access to services such as health and education.

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China’s Communist Party

As China’s Communist Party grows more slowly, its members are getting older

World’s second-largest political party is ageing, official data shows, with nearly 30 per cent of members aged 61 or older.

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The ageing of the Communist Party is unfolding alongside a broader demographic crisis across the country. Photo: AFP

Video | Why is China overhauling its hukou system?

The hukou system once placed severe limits on migrant workers’ access to social welfare in major Chinese cities.

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China’s private sector

China is fretting over a demographic crisis – but what companies might benefit?

Goldman Sachs says pharmaceutical, biotech sectors could see strongest tailwinds, while car industry, tech hardware makers may struggle.

United States

Opinion | As populations fall, nations that can tap human potential will succeed

Countries that use today’s demographic window to accumulate human and technological capital will gain a long-term advantage.

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China consumption

China has the most smokers in the world. Is it harming the economy?

Public health experts warn low taxes on cigarettes risk undermining Beijing’s pursuit of a healthier population.

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A smoker in Yichang city, Hubei province on May 31, 2025. China is home to about 350 million smokers, according to the WHO. Photo: CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images
Ageing society

Opinion | East Asia’s population challenge isn’t just about raising birth rates

Sustainable policies must strengthen people’s well-being and expand opportunities, creating a society where everyone can thrive.

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A woman and child rest on some steps in Tsim Sha Tsui on January 13. Photo: Jelly Tse
Mainland China

How Shenzhen’s growing population defies expectations in China’s changing cities

The global tech powerhouse attracts more workers and has higher birth and lower mortality rates than the national average.

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China's economic recovery

China expands migrant workers’ access to public services

SCMP Plus annotates the State Council’s 13-point guidelines for easing restrictions under the nation’s hukou household registration system.

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