Among China’s 31 provinces and municipalities, 16 provinces had a lower population in 2021 than the year before; while 11 provinces had lower birth rates than death rates, according to official data collected last year.
The data is from public notices issued by local authorities and the China Statistical Yearbook.
By the end of 2021, China’s total population reached 1.41 billion, a small increase of only 480,000 from the end of 2020, according to the data.
About 10.62 million babies were born in 2021, a decrease of 1.4 million from 2020; and 10.14 million people passed away, an increase of 160,000 from 2020. The natural population growth rate, which equals birth rate minus death rate, was 0.34 percent….