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Marriages in China Slump to Historic Low

by Reuters

   Beijing --

   Marriages in China dropped in 2022 to their lowest since records began,
   local news outlet Yicai reported Sunday, continuing a steady decline
   over the past decade although the matrimonial total may have been
   affected by stringent COVID lockdowns.

   Just 6.83 million couples completed their marriage registrations last
   year, data published on the website of the Ministry of Civil Affairs
   showed, down about 800,000 from the previous year.

   The drop in couples tying the knot, which follows pandemic restrictions
   keeping tens of millions locked in their homes or compounds for weeks
   last year, comes as authorities deal with a declining birth rate and a
   falling population.

   In 2022 China's population fell for the first time in six decades, a
   decline that is expected to mark the start of a long period of decline
   in its citizen numbers with profound implications for its economy and
   the world.

   China's birth rate dropped last year to 6.77 births per 1,000 people,
   the lowest on record, from 7.52 in 2021.

   Demographers warn China will get old before it gets rich, as its
   workforce shrinks, and indebted local governments spend more on their
   elderly population.

   To encourage marriage and boost the country's flagging birth rate,
   China said last month it would launch pilot projects in more than 20
   cities to create a "new era" of marriage and a childbearing culture.

   Some provinces are also giving young newlyweds an extension of paid
   marriage leave.