Ann: 1H24 Results Call Notification, page-20

I'm sure these news are not hard to find by now. But anyway

China’s economy grew by 5.2 percent in 2023, hitting the government’s official target, but concerns about growth momentum remain amid a protracted property crisis, sluggish consumer and business confidence, and weak global growth.
...
New births fell 5.7 percent to 9.02 million and the birth rate was a record low 6.39 births per 1,000 people, down from a rate of 6.77 births in 2022.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/17/china-posts-sluggish-gdp-growth-in-2023-population-declines-again

New births fell 5.7 per cent to 9.02 million and the birth rate was a record-low 6.39 births per 1,000 people, down from a rate of 6.77 in 2022.
...
China may get some relief in 2025 from a pick-up in marriages in 2023, when the Covid-19 backlog cleared. Marriages are a leading indicator for birth rates in China, where most single women cannot access child-raising benefits
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/chinas-population-drops-for-2nd-year-in-2023-raises-long-term-growth-concerns

In addition, Li noted that the number of marriage registrations in each quarter of 2023 is higher than the same period in 2022, and the number of marriage registrations in the whole year may return to more than 7 million pairs.
https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202401/1305500.shtml

Local news

At home, a2 Milk rose 17c or 3.96% to $4.46 after China said 9.02m babies were born last year, down from 9.56m in 2022 – the seventh successive year that the number has fallen.Robertshawe said the latest Chinese birth rate was positive for a2 Milk, which had previously indicated the number of births would be in the low 8m. “The birth rate is still down but not as bad as some people thought it would be. And it appears new marriages are increasing, and maybe China has hit the bottom in births.”
https://www.goodreturns.co.nz/article/976522697/a2-milk-rises-as-nz-sharemarket-remains-flat.html


Some old stuff about low expectations

newborns expected to drop below 9 million in 2023
https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202311/1302134.shtml?id=11