Most people think China is the next superpower. But the truth is that China has a catastrophic problem.

China is facing an unprecedented age demographic crisis where the number of old people is rapidly outpacing the number of young people.

What Caused This?

The One-Child Policy: Implemented by the Chinese government in 1979 to control population growth.

Why?

In the 1950s, population growth started to outpace the food supply. In 1964 life expectancy skyrocketed by 5% and steadily increased by year. In the 1970’s economic growth skyrocketed after several important policy changes made by China.

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One-child policy resulted in a large reduction in birth rates, creating a significant age imbalance in the population.

Created a “4-2-1” problem:

  • Where one child is responsible for supporting two parents and four grandparents.

The problem has compounded because of urbanization. Chinese citizens are moving to cities and adopting urban lifestyles at a higher rate, causing the desire to have more children to decrease.

The cost of raising a child in a city, along with the time and effort involved, has discouraged many young couples from having children.

How this impacts China today and going forward

  • Fewer young people entering the workforce to support the older generation
  • Shrinking workforce is leading to labor shortages
  • Reduced productivity and economic growth
  • Increased labor costs and reduced China’s competitiveness in the global market

Economic impact

  • Decreased consumer spending
  • Older populations tend to save more and spend less, leading to decreased consumer spending, which is devastating for economic growth
  • Household consumption accounts for less than 40 percent of China’s GDP (National Bureau of Statistics of China)
  • Ranked 144 in the world for (Household consumption as percent of GDP)
  • The United States is 68%

The only way to fix a problem like this is through mass immigration. Unfortunately for China, it has had a negative net migration rate for the last 50 years.

 

China is going to have major problems over the next decade.

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