Threats, advantages seen in China’s shrinking population

By KEN MORITSUGU
Associated Press

BEIJING (AP) — For seven decades, China’s Communist Party has ruled the world’s most populous country. As the country’s population crests and begins to shrink, experts say, it will face challenges ranging from supporting the elderly to filling the ranks of its military. Population growth has been slowing for years, but the announcement Tuesday that the country’s population fell by about 850,000 in 2022 came sooner than expected. Some analysts say that could feed challenges at home and abroad. Others are less pessimistic.