China will have 211m fewer workers by 2050, official says

The size of China’s workforce will likely drop more than 23 per cent by 2050, prompting the government to improve productivity as an ageing population exacerbates bearish sentiment about the world’s second-largest economy.

Li Zhong, a spokesman for the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, told a press conference on Friday that the mainland’s working population – those aged between 16 and 59 – would fall to about 700 million by 2050, down from the current 911 million.

The official estimate turned out to be greater than previous forecasts by global consultancies that the labour force would shrink by about one-fifth over the next 50 years.

The hidden cracks in China’s employment figures

“We must focus on developing human resources with a long-term view and study how to better use the labour force in an efficient way,” Li said.

His remarks are the latest sign that Beijing will be adamant in implementing new policies to overcome a labour shortage facing the economy as growth slows.

The mainland is expected to raise the retirement age from 60 to 65 in “progressive” steps to tackle the challenged created by an ageing society.

Earlier this year, human resources minister Yin Weimin said a plan to postpone the retirement age had been drafted. It must next be approved by state-level authorities.

Li said raising the retirement age would have only a “limited” impact on younger people’s employment, citing the labour shortage brought by the shrinking workforce.