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Japan's population growth at record low |
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August 5, 2000
TOKYO (AP) - Japan's population grew just 0.17 percent in the year through March, a record slowdown amid widespread concerns about the economic and social impact of a falling birthrate. According to a survey by Japan's Home Affairs Ministry, the nation's population was 126,071,305 as of March 31, up from 125,860,006 the same time a year earlier. The increase was the smallest in both percentage and absolute terms since the ministry began the survey in 1968, Naoki Nagumo, an official at the ministry's Administration Improvement Division, said Friday. Japan's birthrate has dropped in recent years in part because more women are choosing careers over early marriage. Demographers expect the nation's population to peak as early as 2005, which has raised concerns in the Japanese government about the ability of future generations of taxpayers to financially support a rapidly graying population. The ministry's survey, released Thursday, also indicated a slight increase in the number of people living in Japan's three largest cities. The combined populations of the greater Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya areas was 61,910,845. That was up 0.37 percent and represented 49.11 percent of the total population. |