November 2025

China. Health initiative promotes co-prevention of diabetes and shingles for healthy aging

A nationwide health campaign was launched to address the growing challenge of chronic diseases among aging adults in China to raise awareness and promote early intervention against chronic diseases, with a focus on shingles—a painful infection that poses serious risks to people with diabetes. The program, led by China CDC, CCTV.com, and the National Open University for the Elderly, offers free health education targeting adults aged 50 and above. It urged to tackle shingles, a frequently overlooked but debilitating disease,...

China. Robotics eldercare expands amid aging population challenge

Artificial joints fitted closely around Zhang's legs, tiny motors humming as they learned his strides. With each step, the sensors tracked his movements and the whole frame gently pushed him forward. In a rehabilitation center in Beijing's Fengtai District, the 76-year-old, once dependent on a caregiver, lifts his feet, one after the other, walking with the help of a robotic exoskeleton. "I used to need someone by my side," he said with a grin. "With the robot training, I can walk...

Aging population drives China’s healthcare demand

The rapid rise in chronic diseases and aging demographics is placing unprecedented strain on China’s healthcare system, according to Lin Xiao, Sales Manager at Xi'an Haoxuan Bio-tech Co., Ltd. Speaking on the sidelines of API China 2025, Lin said, “I think one of the most pressing changes is raising demand for high quality healthcare service driven by an ageing population and increasing chronic disease. They put significant pressure on the system to deliver efficient and the invitation solution, particularly in...

Digital finance and retirement planning: The role of information cost reduction and trust enhancement channels

By Liang Liu & Zhen Ju With the rapid development of digitalization, retirement decisions are increasingly being mediated by digital finance platforms, which help individuals in effectively managing and planning their retirement. Existing literature primarily focuses on the impacts of financial literacy, risk attitudes, and awareness of retirement goals. Using data from the 2015 China Household Finance Survey, we investigate the effect of digital finance on household retirement planning. Our analysis reveals that digital payment lowers the acquisition cost of pension finance...

China. Long-term capital vital for pension system

BlackRock CCB Wealth Management and China Construction Bank have called for stronger long-term capital support to drive China's pension finance sector, highlighting in a recently released white paper that a stable and transparent capital market is vital for promoting long-term investment, building wealth and ensuring a resilient pension system. By the end of 2024, the total size of China's three-pillar pension system reached 15.66 trillion yuan ($2.2 trillion), accounting for less than 12 percent of GDP, indicating vast room for...

Household financial literacy and retirement planning in rural China

By Yuting Qian, Weiqiang Tan & Jingbo Wu Amid the prevailing importance of discussing rural villagers' retirement in China, this study analyzes the relationship between the financial literacy of rural residents and their plans for retirement. Using in-depth survey data from the Greater Bay Area, this work examines the region's demographic structures and presents the different levels of rural residents' financial literacy. The findings are robust and indicate a positive correlation between financial literacy and retirement planning. The examination also reveals the moderating...

Positive aging takes root in China via community engagement

As China’s 1960s generation enters old age, a societal shift is underway, with positive attitudes toward aging becoming established and fueling an increasing number of seniors seeking fulfilling and diverse lives through community engagement. With hair dyed red and a tendency to speak quickly, Cui Xinyun, 71, appears young and energetic. When Cui started talking about her volunteer work, her eyes lit up. “Our community is like a big family. While helping others, I receive warmth and kindness too,” she...

October 2025

Adapting health, economic and social policies to address population aging in China

By Evandro F. Fang, Yuan Fang, Guobing Chen, He-Ling Wang, Jianying Zhang, Chenkai Wu, Jing Liao, Chenglong Xie, Xiaoting Liu, Kan Wang, Yang Liu, Guang Yang, Qian Wang, Long-Tao He, Jun Li, Hou-Zao Chen, Lin Kang, Yawen Jiang, Huanxing Su, Hong Jiang, Na He, Jun Tao, Sean Xiao Leng, Richard C. Siow, Chunrong Liu, Hafiz T. A. Khan, Yuanli Liu, Hisaya Kato, Takashi Sasaki, Jong In Kim, Andrea Britta Maier, Lin Zhang, Lene Juel Rasmussen, Jean Woo, Jing Wu...

How China’s aging boom is turned into an investment story

With 300 million seniors and a shrinking workforce, China's 'silver economy' is emerging as one of its most durable new growth engines Residents of a community for senior citizens on the outskirts of Beijing. Retired factory supervisor Zhang Meihua starts every morning with a brisk walk around a new riverside park in Chengdu, tracking her steps on a smartwatch made by Huawei. "I never cared about gadgets before," she said. "But my children worry if I don't share my health data....

China Makes Maternity Payment Change in Bid To Boost Birth Rate

A total of 25 Chinese provinces will be distributing maternity leave payments directly to mothers by next month, as part of a broader effort to reverse the country’s flagging birth rate, officials said on Monday. Why It Matters Roughly two-thirds of the global population now lives in countries where the fertility rate has fallen below the replacement level of 2.1 births per woman, according to the French Institute for Demographic Studies. China’s fertility rate—at just 1.0—is among the lowest in the world, raising alarm over...