China’s Population Stalls With Births in 2021: The Lowest in Modern History

In 2021, China experienced a significant decline in newborns, marking the fifth consecutive year of decreasing birth rates. Despite Beijing’s efforts to encourage births, only 10.62 million babies were born, down from 12.02 million in 2020. This number barely exceeded the 10.14 million deaths during the same period.

As a result, China’s population growth has slowed considerably, with the total population reaching 1.413 billion by the end of 2021, a mere 0.034%increase from the previous year. The birthrate, measured as the number of births per thousand people, hit a new low of 7.52 in 2021, compared to 8.52 in 2020.

This demographic challenge poses a significant hurdle for Beijing as it grapples with the consequences of its long-standing one-child policy, which was relaxed in 2016 to allow married couples to have two children. Despite this policy change, birth rates have continued to decline, and some analysts believe that China’s population may have already peaked. The situation underscores the country’s struggle to address its aging population and maintain a sustainable demographic balance¹.