The China Post
Date: July 15, 2017
By: The China Post

TAIPEI, Taiwan — The number of births in the first half of the year has fallen

(Logan Sander, Special to The China Post)

compared to the same period last year — putting 2017 on track to have the lowest birth rate since the aftermath of the 2008-2009 economic crisis, the Taiwan Association of Obstetrics and Gynecology warned on Tuesday.

The average number of births per month in 2017 has been about 15,000, meaning that the year’s total may be below 200,000, said the association’s secretary-general Huang Min-chao, according to a Central News Agency report.

To put things in perspective, the number of births has been between about 197,000 and 230,000 per year since 2010. This year represents a break in the otherwise relatively steady increase since then.    [FULL  STORY]