August 2025

Asia’s elderly risk getting sicker for longer. Hotelier Allen Law wants to ‘bridge the gap’ between lifespan and healthspan

Residents of developed Asian economies, like Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea, consistently top the rankings of places with the world’s longest lifespans. Singapore, for example, boasts an average life expectancy of 86.7 years, putting it at No. 2 behind Monaco, according to the CIA’s world factbook. Yet long lifespans come with a drawback: An extended period of ill-health or disability. Singapore’s average health span—the length of time where someone is deemed to be in good health—is 75 years, as noted...

Turkey is heading towards a demographic shift. An aging society versus the lowest number of children

The latest data from the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜIK) reveals a striking demographic shift in the country, as the number of children declines to unprecedented levels alongside a noticeable increase in the elderly population, raising concerns about the future of demographic balance. The figures show that the number of children under the age of four has decreased this year to about 4.9 million children only, the lowest number recorded in Turkey's history. In contrast, the number of those over the...

Retirement with dignity? The debate on active ageing in Europe

With an ageing population and increased life expectancy, Europe faces a very concrete challenge: how to fund its pension systems. Earlier this year in Brussels, pensioners took to the streets to demand better job security and to oppose the raising of the retirement age. In Europe, some are advocating lowering the retirement age as a way to improve workers' quality of life and to encourage generational turnover in the workforce. Others argue that this would jeopardise the sustainability of pension systems,...

Retirement with dignity? The debate on active ageing in Europe

With an ageing population and increased life expectancy, Europe faces a very concrete challenge: how to fund its pension systems. Earlier this year in Brussels, pensioners took to the streets to demand better job security and to oppose the raising of the retirement age. In Europe, some are advocating lowering the retirement age as a way to improve workers' quality of life and to encourage generational turnover in the workforce. Others argue that this would jeopardise the sustainability of pension systems,...

One in Three Older Households Is Cost Burdened

The recently released State of the Nation’s Housing 2025 report highlights worrying trends in housing affordability for older households (those led by someone age 65 or over). In 2023, over a third (34 percent) of older households were cost burdened, paying more than 30 percent of their income for housing. This represents a new high of over 12.4 million households and an increase of nearly 2.3 million households just since 2019. More than half of these households, 6.7 million, pay over...

Rejuvenating Economics: Subjective Age’s Influence on Work-Life Balance

By Andre Briviba, Valentin Schnellmann & Bruno S. Frey Chronological age is a key indicator in economics, determining policy decisions such as the retirement age and the minimum voting age. The concept of subjective age, extensively studied by gerontologists and psychologists, may be particularly relevant to economic decision-making. Using panel data from German adults aged 40–65 and individual fixed-effects estimations, we investigate the effect of subjective age on work and life satisfaction. Furthermore, we estimate the impact of subjective age...

China’s GDP could slow by more than half in the next 30 years due to population shrinking

China’s long-term economic growth is at risk owing to a shrinking labor force and rapidly aging population, according to Oxford Economics. The country’s potential output growth could fall below 2% by the 2050s, as low birth rates and a rising dependency ratio strain productivity and public finances. While developed nations like the U.S. may buffer this with immigration, China and others face tougher challenges in sustaining growth and managing social support systems. China may be the only nation that could rival...

US. The Silver Dividend: Navigating Longevity Risk in a Rapidly Aging World

The global demographic shift toward an aging population is no longer a distant forecast—it is a present-day reality reshaping economies, financial systems, and investment landscapes. By 2025, the number of people aged 65 and older has surpassed 61.2 million in the U.S. alone, while the U.S. median age has climbed to 39. Globally, 63 countries have already seen their population peak, and by 2080, the number of individuals over 65 is projected to reach 2.2 billion. This unprecedented aging...

The Path to 2075 — The Positive Story of Global Aging (Daly/Njie/Allen)

By Jan Hatzius, Joseph Briggs, Kevin Daly, Johan Allen, Sarah Dong & Megan Peters The global population is aging, driven by a combination of increased longevity and declining fertility. This phenomenon is most pronounced in developed (DM) economies, where the ‘working-age ratio’ (ages 15-64) has already decreased from 67% in 2000 to 63%, and is projected to fall to 57% by 2075. In emerging economies, the 15-64 share is close to a peak (66%) and is expected to decline to...

Extending Healthspans in an Aging World

By Stephen P. Utkus & Olivia S. Mitchell Extensions in human longevity are prompting a growing interest in maximizing healthspan, or the number of years of life unencumbered by the chronic diseases of old age. This chapter reviews recent research on healthy life extension, including several measures and determinants of longer healthspans. We also provide an overview of recent efforts by medical and business enterprises to enhance longevity and healthspan, followed by a discussion of policy and workplace options to...