The total fertility rate in Japan in 2016 fell 0.01 point from the previous year to 1.44, while the number of babies born last year slipped below one million for the first time, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said in an annual demographic survey on Friday.
The total fertility rate in Japan in 2016 fell 0.01 point from the previous year to 1.44, while the number of babies born last year slipped below one million for the first time, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said in an annual demographic survey on Friday.
The rate represents the average number of children a woman is expected to give birth to in her lifetime, covering those aged 15-49.
The number of newborns in 2016 totaled 976,979, down by 28,698 from the preceding year, reflecting a drop in the number of women of childbearing age, according to the survey.
