(ARTICLE FROM https://www.mercatornet.com/)

As we usher in the 2020s with a coronavirus outbreak and massive wildfires, one feels tempted to make forecasts for the upcoming decade with a glimmer of hope amidst the gloom. However, when it comes to demographics for East Asia, there is no silver lining.

Through comparing the present to what might happen in 2030 or 2050 is tricky, we can say confidently that this decade will mark not just the beginning, but the acceleration of East Asia’s demographic collapse. South Korea, Taiwan, China and Japan are on expressways to self-extinction.