China’s Birth Slump Signals Deepening Structural Crisis: Analysts

Experts warn the birth slump threatens China’s future workforce, growth prospects, and social stability.

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’s plunging birth rate is increasingly being viewed by analysts as a point of no return—one that reflects not only changing social attitudes but the long-term consequences of decades of state control over family life.

“The pace of the decline is striking, particularly in the absence of major shocks,” Yue Su, principal economist at the UK-based Economist Intelligence Unit, told CNBC.

Rapid Demographic Contraction

While falling birthrates are a common phenomenon in many countries, analysts say China’s trajectory stands apart in both speed and scale.