BERLIN, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- The birth rate in Germany has fallen sharply from 1.58 children per woman in 2021 to 1.35 this year, according to a report published Wednesday by the ifo Institute for Economic Research.
The COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the resulting loss of real income due to high inflation "have led many young families to temporarily postpone their plans or desire to have children," said researcher Joachim Ragnitz from the ifo Dresden branch.
The report highlighted an overall decline of nearly 13 percent in Germany's birth rate between 2021 and 2023, with a particularly striking drop of 17.5 percent in the eastern states.
"In total, almost 80,000 fewer children were born in 2022 and 2023 than would have been expected," Ragnitz said.
This trend mirrors a broader decline in fertility rates across most countries in the European Union (EU). Eurostat data released earlier this year showed that the number of live births in the EU fell below 4 million in 2022, marking the lowest level since 1960. ■
