{"id":2341415,"date":"2024-09-15T14:18:01","date_gmt":"2024-09-15T18:18:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/china-is-raising-its-retirement-age-now-among-the-youngest-in-the-worlds-major-economies-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-09-15T14:22:39","modified_gmt":"2024-09-15T18:22:39","slug":"china-is-raising-its-retirement-age-now-among-the-youngest-in-the-worlds-major-economies-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/china-is-raising-its-retirement-age-now-among-the-youngest-in-the-worlds-major-economies-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"China is raising its retirement age, now among the youngest in the world\u2019s major economies &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">36<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fchina-is-raising-its-retirement-age-now-among-the-youngest-in-the-worlds-major-economies-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2341415&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>China is set to raise its retirement age starting in January 2025, a change aimed at \u200caddressing the challenges \u2063posed by an aging population and a shrinking workforce. Currently, \u2062the retirement age for men is 60 and varies for women between 50 and 55 depending on whether they work in blue-collar or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/5-reasons-making-taxpayers-pay-off-student-loans-is-a-rotten-idea\/\" title=\"5 Reasons Making Taxpayers Pay Off Student Loans Is A Rotten Idea\">white-collar jobs<\/a>. Under the new policy, the retirement age for men\u2062 will increase to 63, while women will have their retirement age raised to either 55 or 58,\u200d depending on their occupation. This policy change will be implemented gradually over 15 years.<\/p>\n<p>The decision comes as China grapples with \u200c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/much-deeper-than-anticipated-falling-support-among-minority-voters-could-spell-doom-for-democrats\/\" title=\"Dire Consequences: Declining Minority Support Threatens Democrats\">significant demographic shifts<\/a>: nearly 300 million people are over the \u200cage of 60,\u200d and projections suggest this number could reach 400 million by 2035. Experts have noted that the current retirement ages, \u2063established in the 1950s, are outdated, given the increase in life expectancy. The pension fund faces increasing pressure due to a rising number of retirees and fewer young workers contributing\u2062 to the system. <\/p>\n<p>Population\u200c decline further complicates the matter, as fewer births have been reported in recent years, indicating \u200ca demographic trend that will place a larger burden on the workforce to support\u200c the elderly. This change in retirement policy \u200breflects broader global challenges\u200c with pension systems, as countries like the U.S. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/san-francisco-hires-new-tourism-boss-who-says-hell-change-ongoing-narrative-as-city-battles-drug-use-homelessness\/\" title=\"San Francisco hires new tourism head to tackle drug use and homelessness.\">face similar issues<\/a> with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/social-security-update-direct-payment-worth-up-to-4555-goes-out-to-millions-in-11-days\/\" title=\"Social Security update: Direct payment worth up to ,555 goes out to millions in 11 days\">social security funding<\/a>. The move is seen as a necessary adjustment to ensure sustainable pension funding, although experts predict it may lead to short-term difficulties for many workers.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">China is raising its retirement age, now among the youngest in the world&rsquo;s major economies<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1760320\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>BEIJING (AP) &mdash;<\/strong> Starting next year, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/China\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>China<\/a> will raise its retirement age for workers, which is now among the youngest in the world&rsquo;s major <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/economy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>economies<\/a>, in an effort to address its shrinking population and aging <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/labor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>workforce<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The Standing Committee of the National People&rsquo;s Congress, the country&rsquo;s legislature, passed the new policy Friday after a sudden announcement earlier in the week that it was reviewing the measure, state broadcaster CCTV announced.<\/p>\n<p>The policy change will be carried out over 15 years, with the retirement age for men raised to 63 years, and for women to 55 or 58 years depending on their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/jobs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>jobs<\/a>. The current retirement age is 60 for men and 50 for women in blue-collar jobs and 55 for women doing white-collar work.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;We have more people coming into the retirement age, and so the pension fund is (facing) high pressure. That&rsquo;s why I think it&rsquo;s now time to act seriously,&rdquo; said Xiujian Peng, a senior research fellow at Victoria University in Australia who studies China&rsquo;s population and its ties to the economy.<\/p>\n<p>The previous retirement ages were set in the 1950&rsquo;s, when life expectancy was only around 40 years, Peng said.<\/p>\n<p>The policy will be implemented starting in January, according to the announcement from China&rsquo;s legislature. The change will take effect progressively based on people&rsquo;s birthdates.<\/p>\n<p>For example, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/men\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>man<\/a> born in January 1971 could retire at the age of 61 years and 7 months in August 2032, according to a chart released along with the policy. A man born in May 1971 could retire at the age of 61 years and 8 months in January 2033.<\/p>\n<p>Demographic pressures made the move long overdue, experts say. By the end of 2023, China counted nearly 300 million people over the age of 60. By 2035, that figure is projected to be 400 million, larger than the population of the U.S. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences had previously projected that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/government-watchdog-calls-on-new-york-pension-fund-to-divest-from-ben-and-jerrys-parent-company\/\" title=\"Government Watchdog Calls on New York Pension Fund to Divest From Ben and Jerry\u2019s Parent Company\">public pension fund<\/a> will run out of money by that year.<\/p>\n<p>Pressure on social benefits such as pensions and social security is hardly a China-specific problem. The U.S. also faces the issue as analysis shows that currently,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/medicare-social-security-finances-shortfall-debt-biden-b1f45ba6dd6fdef18e741e308d8ecf12\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>the Social Security fund won&rsquo;t be able to pay out full benefits to people by 2033.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This is happening everywhere,&rdquo; said Yanzhong Huang, senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations. &ldquo;But in China with its large elderly population, the challenge is much larger.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>That is on top of fewer births, as younger people opt out of having children, citing high costs. In 2022, China&rsquo;s National Bureau of Statistics reported that for the first time the country had 850,000 fewer people at the end of the year than the previous year&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/taiwan-china-hong-kong-eb24f22b99fc777ec9909f6e0c7e322f\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>, a turning point from population growth to decline.<\/a>&nbsp;In 2023,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/china-population-births-deaths-covid-b0ec148b3f8db6b2863aeca02078bd7a\">the population shrank further<\/a>, by 2 million people.<\/p>\n<p>What that means is that the burden of funding elderly people&rsquo;s pensions will be divided among a smaller group of younger workers, as pension payments are largely funded by deductions from people who are currently working.<\/p>\n<p>Researchers measure that pressure by looking at a number called the dependency ratio, which counts the number of people over the age of 65 compared to the number of workers under 65. That number was 21.8% in 2022, according to government statistics, meaning that roughly five workers would support one retiree. The percentage is expected to rise, meaning fewer workers will be shouldering the burden of one retiree.<\/p>\n<p>The necessary course correction will cause short-term pain, experts say, coming at a time of already high youth <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/unemployment\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>unemployment<\/a> and a soft economy.<\/p>\n<p>A 52-year-old Beijing resident, who gave his family name as Lu and will now retire at age 61 instead of 60, was positive about the change. &ldquo;I view this as a good thing, because our society&rsquo;s getting older, and in developed countries, the retirement age is higher,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>Li Bin, 35, who works in the event planning industry, said she was a bit sad.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s three years less of play time. I had originally planned to travel around after retirement,&rdquo; she said. But she said it was better than expected because the retirement age was only raised three years for women in white-collar jobs.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title> <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Some of the comments on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>social media<\/a> when the policy review was announced earlier in the week reflected anxiety.<\/p>\n<p>But of the 13,000 comments on the Xinhua news post announcing the news, only a few dozen were visible, suggesting that many others had been censored.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1760320\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1760320\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>China is set to increase its retirement age, which is currently one of the lowest among major global economies. Beginning next year, this change aims to tackle the challenges posed by a declining population and an aging workforce. The National People\u2019s Congress, China&#8217;s legislative body, approved the new policy on Friday after announcing earlier in the week that it was under review, as reported by state broadcaster CCTV. The adjustment will be phased in over 15 years, raising the retirement age for men to 63 and for women to either 55 or 58 depending on their occupation. Currently, men retire at 60 while women retire at 50 for blue-collar jobs and at 55 for white-collar positions.<\/p>\n<p>Xiujian Peng, a senior research fellow from Victoria University in Australia who studies China&#8217;s demographics and economic implications, noted that with more individuals reaching retirement age, there is increasing pressure on pension funds. He pointed out that previous retirement ages were established in the 1950s when life expectancy was around just 40 years.<\/p>\n<p>The implementation of this policy will begin in January and will be based on individuals&#8217; birthdates; for instance, a man born in January 1971 could retire at approximately age 61 years and seven months by August 2032. Experts believe demographic pressures have made this change necessary; nearly 300 million people aged over sixty are expected by the end of this year\u2014a figure projected to rise to about four hundred million by 2035\u2014exceeding the total population of the United States.<\/p>\n<p>The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences has warned that public pension funds may deplete by then as well. This issue isn&#8217;t unique to China; similar challenges are faced globally including in the U.S., where projections indicate Social Security may not fully meet obligations by2033.<\/p>\n<p>Yanzhong Huang from the Council on Foreign Relations emphasized that while these issues are widespread globally, they pose a greater challenge for China due to its large elderly demographic coupled with declining birth rates as younger generations choose not to have children due to financial constraints. In fact, China&#8217;s National Bureau of Statistics reported a decrease of approximately850 thousand people last year\u2014the first decline since records began\u2014and further shrinkage occurred this year with two million fewer residents.<\/p>\n<p>This situation means fewer younger workers will support an increasing number of retirees through pension contributions derived from current employees&#8217; wages. The dependency ratio\u2014comparing those over sixty-five against those under sixty-five\u2014was recorded at about21.8% last year; thus roughly five workers supported each retiree\u2014a figure expected only to worsen moving forward.<\/p>\n<p>Experts warn that while necessary adjustments may lead to short-term difficulties amid high youth unemployment rates and economic softness now present within China\u2019s economy; some citizens view these changes positively like Lu,a52-year-old Beijing resident who expressed optimism regarding societal aging trends aligning more closely with developed nations\u2019 practices regarding retirement ages despite having his own plans altered slightly.<\/p>\n<p>Conversely Li Bin,a35-year-old event planner expressed disappointment noting less leisure time post-retirement but acknowledged it could have been worse given only three additional years were added onto her working life compared previously anticipated timelines before reforms took effect . <\/p>\n<p>Social media reactions reflected mixed feelings towards proposed changes\u2014with many comments appearing censored following initial announcements indicating public anxiety surrounding potential impacts stemming from such policies being implemented across society overall<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2634,"featured_media":2341416,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/chinas-retirement-age-.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[4501,40932,40931],"class_list":["post-2341415","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-china","tag-major-economies","tag-retirement-age"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/chinas-retirement-age-.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2341415","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2634"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2341415"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2341415\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2341416"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2341415"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2341415"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2341415"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}