Demographics

Japanese inequality lives in a retirement home

26 Jan 2022

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida wants to shrink the widening wealth gap. One big factor is decaying elderly finances as inflation ticks up and fiscal coffers shrink. More transfers to retirees would be smart politics, yet young Japanese pay too high a price supporting the old.

Demographic flatline will test China’s generosity

18 Jan 2022

The population may have peaked in 2021, far earlier than expected. Beijing might prefer to continue to tackle root causes including high living costs, but a desire to prop up the economy in a key political year makes less disruptive, clumsy fixes like cash subsidies practical.

Viewsroom: China’s baby bust, European SPAC boom

13 May 2021

China’s census data showed the population grew just 0.53% every year in the decade to 2020, with fertility rates dropping to Japanese levels. That’s bad news for growth. And European rainmakers like Claudio Costamagna and Ian Osborne offer market-friendlier blank-check deals.

China population slowdown speeds up labour crisis

11 May 2021

Census data show the country’s 1.4 bln people are barely growing, adding to fears that a shrinking workforce will hurt the economy. Beijing has targeted birth rates but policies to boost productivity are needed. Cracking down on how gig workers are treated is a good start.

Hong Kong-on-Thames lies in not-too-distant future

13 Apr 2021

Real estate tycoons from the former British colony are rushing to build new homes in London. They appeal to Hong Kong residents taking up UK visas, and offer a better return on investment than at home. It’s a bold bet on the capital’s pandemic-afflicted property market.

How to play the post-Covid return to getting it on

12 Apr 2021

Rich-country birth rates fell in 2020 amid economic uncertainty, reduced social life, postponed nuptials and fertility treatments. The patter of tiny feet will return as lockdowns end and economies bounce. Diaper producers and formula makers like P&G and Reckitt stand to benefit.

U.S. Latino vote shows economic progress relative

10 Nov 2020

Support for Donald Trump among Hispanics jumped in Florida and Texas where many have flourished economically since 2016. But Arizona, where income inequality is more apparent, tilted leftward. Joe Biden wants to close the wealth gap, which helps the Democrats, at least for now.

Hadas: Good economy helps with climate change

25 Sep 2019

Man-made global warming is an urgent concern for heads of state gathering at the United Nations. Receding poverty, technological momentum and slowing population growth all make the challenge less daunting. These great economic trends need more support from governments.

China will scale its 2023 population peak

2 May 2019

A new study suggests the country may top out at 1.4 bln people in four years, earlier than expected. That’s disheartening for Mattel, Lego and companies in education. But it reflects a richer, better-schooled nation, while older workers are retiring later too, softening the blow.

Babytree’s Hong Kong IPO robs the cradle

24 Aug 2018

The Alibaba-backed Chinese parenting site wants to raise up to $1 bln. Targeting tiger mothers might seem timely, given Beijing’s fertility push. Yet the chat-and-shopping combination is unprofitable after 11 years, and its desired value exceeds the wildest demographic optimism.

U.S. colleges may need to start on M&A course

25 Jul 2017

After tripling in real terms since the early 1970s, tuition costs are now rising only a hair faster than CPI. Cost cuts won't offset flagging enrollment, the result of a stronger job market and demographic shifts. Merging could help, especially for small private schools.

Theresa May has a way out of UK pension pickle

28 Apr 2017

The prime minister is dithering over whether to keep guaranteeing above-inflation hikes to pensioners. The triple-lock is nonsensical, inequitable and unfit for an era of Brexit and stagnant wages. May has the political capital to adopt a fairer single-lock, tied to earnings.

Dubai could create its own demographic dividend

26 Sep 2016

The emirate has weathered low oil prices, but an unbalanced workforce means it is missing an economic opportunity. Only one in 23 active workers is a local, official data suggests. If Dubai can't turn citizens into workers, it might as well turn skilled workers into citizens.

Hadas: Central banks play with monetary absurdity

23 Sep 2016

Monetary authorities have taken recourse in increasingly empty promises. The Bank of Japan's Haruhiko Kuroda has taken this verbal drama to a new and ultimately dangerous level. Central banks could rely on deeds, not words, if their tools and targets were more realistic.

Post-Brexit generation war can still be avoided

24 Jun 2016

Older Britons voted to leave the EU, while younger ones wanted to stay. It’s a flashpoint in a wider global story of inter-generational strife. Unless some of the wealth is diverted their way, a brain drain of justifiably cheesed-off millennials will hit economic growth.

Spanish politicians leave demographic bomb ticking

31 May 2016

While economic activity has picked up, the Spanish population is ageing faster than the EU average. Consensus and long-term planning are needed to tackle the burden this will place on the welfare system and growth prospects. The current polarisation in politics stands in the way.