Markets
Animation: Comparing China vs. India Population Pyramids
Enacted in 1979 by China’s Communist Party, the controversial “One Child Policy” was primarily meant to slow the country’s rapid population growth, while capping the growing drain on China’s limited resources.
Even though the government’s primary objectives were arguably achieved through these extreme measures, it has been at an extraordinary human cost. The draconian enforcement of these policies, combined with the unintended consequences on families and the cultural preference for male children, will have an everlasting impact on the country’s future.
Wonky Demographics
Fast forward to today, and the policy is still in place, but to a lesser effect. Since early 2016, families have been allowed to have two children – but even with this change in place, China still has a self-inflicted demographic disaster on its hands.
In the below population pyramids created by Aron Strandberg, the very different trajectories of China and India are compared directly. China is not only skewing older and more male – it is also losing its strong base of younger workers that could potentially support the rest of the population.
China’s “population pyramid” is not really a pyramid at all – in the coming decades, it’ll look more like a single pillar stuck propping up a burgeoning elderly demographic of people born before 1979.
And over time, the unintended and ongoing effects of population control will be extremely impactful on China’s future. As one example of the emerging challenges, a recent estimate published in Scientific American pegged China’s shortage of women at 62 million, creating a situation where there’ll be millions of men who are unable to marry.
This gender imbalance exacerbates an already existing shortfall at the younger end of China’s population spectrum – and the end result will be a rapidly falling ratio of workers to retirees in the Chinese economy:
Today, the ratio is roughly seven workers per retiree – and by 2050, when China’s population is 100 million people fewer than it is today, there will be just two workers per retiree.
A New Population Paradigm
As China struggles with a declining population and a lack of young people, India is expected to takes its place as the most populous country in the world by roughly 2027.
This new paradigm will be an incredibly interesting one to watch.
By the year 2100, China won’t be home to a single one of the world’s 20 most populous cities.
Instead, these massive metropolises will almost exclusively be located in places like India and Africa – and some of them, like Mumbai, will hold 60 million or more inhabitants.
China’s New Hope
While this shift in global demographics is going to be extremely difficult to deal with for China, there is optimism that increasing levels of automation and the emergence of artificial intelligence will help make up for any shortfalls.
The AI market alone is expected to drive $7 trillion in GDP growth by 2030, and China’s investments in robotics and automation are sure to keep the country a center of manufacturing in the future – even if those factories are being staffed with robots instead of workers.
Markets
U.S. Debt Interest Payments Reach $1 Trillion
U.S. debt interest payments have surged past the $1 trillion dollar mark, amid high interest rates and an ever-expanding debt burden.
U.S. Debt Interest Payments Reach $1 Trillion
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
The cost of paying for America’s national debt crossed the $1 trillion dollar mark in 2023, driven by high interest rates and a record $34 trillion mountain of debt.
Over the last decade, U.S. debt interest payments have more than doubled amid vast government spending during the pandemic crisis. As debt payments continue to soar, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reported that debt servicing costs surpassed defense spending for the first time ever this year.
This graphic shows the sharp rise in U.S. debt payments, based on data from the Federal Reserve.
A $1 Trillion Interest Bill, and Growing
Below, we show how U.S. debt interest payments have risen at a faster pace than at another time in modern history:
Date | Interest Payments | U.S. National Debt |
---|---|---|
2023 | $1.0T | $34.0T |
2022 | $830B | $31.4T |
2021 | $612B | $29.6T |
2020 | $518B | $27.7T |
2019 | $564B | $23.2T |
2018 | $571B | $22.0T |
2017 | $493B | $20.5T |
2016 | $460B | $20.0T |
2015 | $435B | $18.9T |
2014 | $442B | $18.1T |
2013 | $425B | $17.2T |
2012 | $417B | $16.4T |
2011 | $433B | $15.2T |
2010 | $400B | $14.0T |
2009 | $354B | $12.3T |
2008 | $380B | $10.7T |
2007 | $414B | $9.2T |
2006 | $387B | $8.7T |
2005 | $355B | $8.2T |
2004 | $318B | $7.6T |
2003 | $294B | $7.0T |
2002 | $298B | $6.4T |
2001 | $318B | $5.9T |
2000 | $353B | $5.7T |
1999 | $353B | $5.8T |
1998 | $360B | $5.6T |
1997 | $368B | $5.5T |
1996 | $362B | $5.3T |
1995 | $357B | $5.0T |
1994 | $334B | $4.8T |
1993 | $311B | $4.5T |
1992 | $306B | $4.2T |
1991 | $308B | $3.8T |
1990 | $298B | $3.4T |
1989 | $275B | $3.0T |
1988 | $254B | $2.7T |
1987 | $240B | $2.4T |
1986 | $225B | $2.2T |
1985 | $219B | $1.9T |
1984 | $205B | $1.7T |
1983 | $176B | $1.4T |
1982 | $157B | $1.2T |
1981 | $142B | $1.0T |
1980 | $113B | $930.2B |
1979 | $96B | $845.1B |
1978 | $84B | $789.2B |
1977 | $69B | $718.9B |
1976 | $61B | $653.5B |
1975 | $55B | $576.6B |
1974 | $50B | $492.7B |
1973 | $45B | $469.1B |
1972 | $39B | $448.5B |
1971 | $36B | $424.1B |
1970 | $35B | $389.2B |
1969 | $30B | $368.2B |
1968 | $25B | $358.0B |
1967 | $23B | $344.7B |
1966 | $21B | $329.3B |
Interest payments represent seasonally adjusted annual rate at the end of Q4.
At current rates, the U.S. national debt is growing by a remarkable $1 trillion about every 100 days, equal to roughly $3.6 trillion per year.
As the national debt has ballooned, debt payments even exceeded Medicaid outlays in 2023—one of the government’s largest expenditures. On average, the U.S. spent more than $2 billion per day on interest costs last year. Going further, the U.S. government is projected to spend a historic $12.4 trillion on interest payments over the next decade, averaging about $37,100 per American.
Exacerbating matters is that the U.S. is running a steep deficit, which stood at $1.1 trillion for the first six months of fiscal 2024. This has accelerated due to the 43% increase in debt servicing costs along with a $31 billion dollar increase in defense spending from a year earlier. Additionally, a $30 billion increase in funding for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in light of the regional banking crisis last year was a major contributor to the deficit increase.
Overall, the CBO forecasts that roughly 75% of the federal deficit’s increase will be due to interest costs by 2034.
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