Health: record decline in population in Japan, in 2013 -244 000 - Focus

Rome, January 2 (Reuters) – Decline records of the population in Japan has declined to 244,000 units in 2013, according to estimates by the Japanese Ministry of Health. Last year, 1,031,000 children were born, about 6,000 fewer than in 2012. While the number of people who died in 2013 was 1,275,000, an increase of 19,000 from the previous year. If current trends continue – reports the BBC online news – Japan will lose a third of its population over the next 50 years. A quarter of the Japanese is now ‘over 65′ and this figure is expected to reach nearly 40% by 2060. According to the government, the population was 126 393 679 people March 31, 2013, a decrease of 0.2% compared to the previous year.