A man pushes a child in a stroller along a street on the Bund in Shanghai on Jan. 19, 2026. Jade Gao/AFP via Getty Images
China recorded its lowest birth rate ever in 2025, underscoring the challenges Beijing faces in averting a demographic crisis of its own making.
Only 7.92 million babies were born last year, down from the 9.54 million registered in 2024, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Jan. 19.
