Official data released this Monday, 18th, show that the number of marriages in China increased 12.4% in 2023 compared to the previous year, which had not happened in almost a decade in the country. In total, there were 7.68 million new marriages, an increase of 845 thousand when compared to 2022.
The increase may be justified due to young people who had postponed marriage due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Despite thatthe number is still much lower than the peak seen in 2013, when there were 13.47 million marriages.
Demographic crisis
China, which faces difficulties in increasing its birth rate and reduce population agingis trying to reverse population decline through birth incentive policies. The Chinese Prime Minister, Li Qiang promised in March that his government would reduce the costs of childbirth, parenting and education, with the aim of achieving a “birth-friendly society and promoting long-term, balanced population development”.
The low birth rate and deaths from Covid-19 resulted in a drop in the Chinese population for the second consecutive year in 2023. And the expectation is that around 300 million Chinese people will retire in the next decade, equivalent to almost the total of the United States population.
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The combination of the population decline and the increase in retired people worries authorities about the possibility of affecting the country’s economic growth in the long term.
Uncertain relief
The increase in marriages is seen as a relief by politicians, as it could lead to a consequent increase in the country’s birth rate and reduce population decline in 2024.
Since the beginning of Year of the Dragon, which began on February 10, saw an increase in the birth of babies across the country, according to financial news portal Yicai. However, the choice of many Chinese not to have children or wait to get married, due to financial instability, could affect the growth of the world’s second largest economy.
