Explainer | China population: 6 takeaways from 2023 as its populace fell by the size of New Mexico
- Mainland China’s population fell by 2.08 million last year to 1.4097 billion, down from 1.4118 billion in 2022, while births declined by 5.6 per cent to 9.02 million in 2023
- The world’s second-largest economy is under pressure from a population that is declining and rapidly ageing
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China posts record-low birth rate despite government push for babies
1. Population decline a ‘concerning trend’
The official population data includes its 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, as well as servicemen, but excludes foreigners.
In terms of gender, China’s male population stood at 720.32 million in 2023, while the female population was 689.35 million.
“The population contraction observed in 2023 aligns with our earlier projections,” said Yue Su, principal economist for China at The Economist Intelligence Unit.
Demographer Yi Fuxian, a senior scientist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and author of Big Country with an Empty Nest, noted how China’s total population fall in 2023 was equivalent to the US state of New Mexico.
Economist Hao Hong wrote on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, that China’s population decline last year was a “concerning trend”.