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Australia warns of risks from ageing population, falling birth rates
Reuters • • world
Key Points:
- Australia is projected to experience more deaths than births for the first time in the 2060s, marking a significant demographic shift driven by an ageing population, declining fertility rates, and reduced immigration.
- The Treasury's Intergenerational Report highlights five major economic challenges over the next 40 years: AI, geopolitical fragmentation, the energy transition, an ageing population, and a shift toward a service-based economy.
- Population growth is expected to slow to 0.9% annually, down from 1.4% over the past four decades, as net overseas migration decreases before stabilizing.
- The ageing population will increase demand for health and care services, with those over 85 expected to triple by 2066, exacerbating labor shortages in healthcare sectors that rely heavily on migrant workers.
- Recent immigration tightening by the Labor government aims to counter rising support for the right-wing One Nation party, even as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese faces declining approval ratings amid ongoing economic pressures.
