No. of Japanese newborns rises for 1st time in 11 yrs in Jan.-June of 2026

The number of babies born to Japanese nationals in Japan rose 0.4 percent from a year ago to 320,458 in the January-June period of 2026, marking the first year-on-year gain in 11 years on a first-half basis, government data showed Wednesday.Experts said the increase in births may have been supported by a rise in marriages in 2024 and 2025, a key factor influencing birth numbers.But births this year are expected to remain near last year's level of 671,270, which marked a record low for the 10th straight year.Annual births in Japan have generally declined since reaching 2.09 million in 1973, …READ FULL ARTICLE