News from China of the decline in that country's population by 850 000 people year-on-year to around 1,4 billion at the end of 2022 has been lost in the wave of local news reporting on the fallout from rolling blackouts.
This relatively sparse coverage belies its importance; the fall in China's population has long-term implications for global production, consumption, trade and inflation (see FW, 10 February).
