On 29 October 2015, China abolished its long-standing one-child policy. It announced a policy allowing each married couple to have 2 children. The move was said to aim to address demographic and social security challenges.
On 29 October 2015, China abolished the one-child policy it had maintained for many years as a population-control measure. It announced a shift to a policy allowing each married couple to have up to 2 children.
The one-child policy was introduced in 1979 to control population growth, reportedly with the aim of alleviating concerns about future food and resource shortages. However, the aging population and inadequate social security infrastructure became increasingly serious, leading to a review of the policy.
When the policy was introduced, the Marriage Law set the minimum marriageable age at 22 for men and 20 for women. Couples were required to follow planned childbearing, while those who declared their compliance received incentives such as subsidies representing part of their monthly income, and penalties including wage cuts were imposed on those who resisted.
After the one-child policy was abolished, a policy allowing each married couple to have 2 children was introduced, with the stated aim of correcting demographic imbalances and improving the sustainability of the economy and social security. The Nikkei Stock Average ended that day at ¥18,935.71.