(Yicai Global) Aug. 1 -- Chinese women are increasingly less inclined to have babies, with financial considerations among the main factors, the findings of an official survey showed.

Women of childbearing age intend to have 1.64 kids on average, significantly less than in previous years, according to an article published in the journal Qiushi today by the Party Committee of the National Health Commission and based on a survey the NHC did last year. The figures for 2017 and 2019 were 1.76 and 1.73, respectively.

For women born after 1990, the latest figure was even lower than the headline rate, at 1.54.

As China’s modernization progresses and education and social security levels rise, people are less inclined to have children, the report said. It also said the main worries for prospective parents are the financial burden, women's concerns about career development after giving birth, and a lack of child care options.

Due to these factors, China's population growth has slowed significantly in recent years and is expected to shrink during the 14th Five-Year Plan, which runs through 2025. China is expected to enter a phase of pronounced aging around 2035, when the proportion of people aged over 60 will exceed 30 percent, the NHC has predicted.

The article pointed out that China should further support parents through housing, education, medical, employment, tax and social security policies, while also finding ways to encourage childbirth, such as exploring ways to share the cost of maternity leave, expediting the building of subsidized rental houses, and developing a system of inclusive childcare services.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Tom Litting