China earmarks $16 billion budget for 2025 childcare subsidies
Increasing spending on family support reportedly creates a strong system to address China's various economic and social factors that discourage childbirth.
HONG KONG - China's finance ministry on July 30 said it had earmarked 90 billion yuan (S$16.14 billion) as an initial budget for childcare subsidy payments in 2025 , an amount that experts said would probably be insufficient to boost a flagging birth rate.
China announced a childcare subsidy of 3,600 yuan per year for every child on July 28 , until they reach the age of three.
Subsidies will start from the year 2025 , and children born before 2025 who are less than three years old will get partial subsidies.
Families can apply for the support from late August, Mr Wang Haidong, director of the Department of Population and Family of the National Health Commission, said at a press conference on July 30 to explain the programme.
Chinese provinces have started issuing local childcare subsidies in the last two years, but the amounts are not uniform and range from 1,000 yuan per child to as much as 100,000 yuan including housing subsidies.
Mr Guo Yang, director at the Chinese Ministry of Finance, said the central government would subsidise local administrations.
'This demonstrates the central government's high attention and strong support for local governments and will further strengthen local management responsibilities,' he said.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
Singapore MHA to support HSA's crackdown on Kpod abusers and help in treatment of offenders: Shanmugam
Singapore Bukit Panjang LRT to shut on 2 Sundays to facilitate tests; some upgrading work nearing completion
Singapore Jail, fine for man linked to case involving 3 bank accounts that received over $680m in total
Singapore Provision shop owner who raped 11-year-old gets more than 14 years' jail
Business S'pore's economic resilience will face headwinds in second half of 2025 from tariffs, trade conflicts: MAS
Business S'pore's Q2 total employment rises but infocomm, professional services see more job cuts
Singapore Fewer than 1 in 5 people noticed suspicious items during MHA's social experiments
Asia Powerful 8.8-magnitude quake in Russia's far east causes tsunami; Japan, Hawaii order evacuations
The high cost of childcare and education, as well as job uncertainty and a slowing economy have discouraged many young Chinese couples from starting a family, at a time when China is already ageing.
Roughly 300 million Chinese are expected to enter retirement in the coming decade – the equivalent of almost the entire US population.
The authorities rolled out a series of 'fertility-friendly' measures in 2024, including enhanced maternity insurance and leave, to try and boost the birth rate, which hit a record low in 2023.
China's current spending on family-friendly policies is estimated to be well below 1 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP), compared with 2 per cent to 4 per cent in many Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries, said Dr Xiujian Peng, senior research fellow in the Centre of Policy Studies at Victoria University.
'If China can increase its spending on family support even to 2 per cent of its GDP – about three trillion yuan annually – it might create a strong system to address various economic and social factors that discourage childbirth,' she said.
Promoting family-friendly work environments, including childcare services, breastfeeding rooms and strengthening female workers' rights are also being urged, said Ms Liu Hongmei, director of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, a state-run body. REUTERS
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
10 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Ukraine's drone attack sparks fire at oil depot in Russia's Sochi, governor says
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox More than 120 firefighters were trying to extinguish a blaze at an oil depot in the Russian city of Sochi that was sparked by a Ukrainian drone attack, regional Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said early on Sunday on the Telegram messaging app. In the Krasnodar region where Sochi is located, a fuel tank with a capacity of 2,000 cubic metres (70,000 cubic feet) was on fire, Russia's RIA news agency reported, citing emergency officials. Rosaviatsia, Russia's civil aviation authority, said on Telegram that flights were halted at Sochi's airport to ensure air safety. Reuters could not independently verify the reports. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine. The attack, which Kondratyev said was in the Adler district of the coastal resort city, would be Ukraine's latest on infrastructure inside Russia that Kyiv deems key to Moscow's war efforts. A woman was killed in the Adler district in a Ukrainian drone attack late last month, but attacks on Sochi, which hosted the 2014 Olympic Winter Games, have been infrequent in the war that Russia launched in February 2022. The Krasnodar region on the Black Sea is home to the Ilsky refinery near the city of Krasnodar, among the largest in southern Russia and a frequent target of Ukraine's drone attacks. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Despite bag checks and warnings, young partygoers continue to vape in clubs in Singapore Singapore Ong Beng Seng to plead guilty on Aug 4, more than 2 years after trip to Qatar with Iswaran Singapore LTA, Singapore bus operators reviewing Malaysia's request to start services from JB at 4am Singapore NDP 2025: Veteran Red Lion says each leap 'feels like 5km run' Business Decoupling to save on tax? You may lose right to property if ties go awry Singapore Lessons learnt from Singapore's love-hate relationship with e-scooters Opinion At UN's Wipo, Singaporean Daren Tang strives to create an equal music for haves and have-nots Asia Mass grave with over 100 skeletons in Sri Lanka brings up old wounds Also on Sunday, the governor of Voronezh region in southern Russia said a woman had been injured in a Ukrainian drone strike that caused several fires, while Russia launched a missile attack on Kyiv, according to the military administration of the Ukrainian capital. REUTERS
Straits Times
10 minutes ago
- Straits Times
After a lag, US consumers begin to feel the pinch of tariffs
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Government data showed prices rose in June on items heavily exposed to tariffs, such as home furnishings, toys and appliances. Companies are starting to shift more tariff-related costs onto consumers. Many businesses chose to absorb the additional tax during the early days of President Donald Trump's trade war . But evidence is emerging that they are running out of options to keep prices stable in the face of deteriorating profit margins, suggesting that the tariffs could have a more pronounced effect on prices in the months ahead. Government data shows that prices rose in June on items heavily exposed to tariffs, such as home furnishings, toys and appliances. And in recent days – before Mr Trump announced tariffs for much of the world on the night of July 31 – Adidas, Procter & Gamble, Stanley Black & Decker and other large corporations told investors that they either had increased prices or planned to do so soon to offset the tariff costs. Companies like Walmart and toy makers Hasbro and Mattel had already warned that tariffs would lead to higher prices. 'We have no interest in running a lower-margin business, particularly due to tariffs,' Mr Richard Westenberger, the chief financial officer of Carter's, a children's apparel maker, said on a call with analysts July 25. 'And if this is something that's going to be a permanent increase to our cost structure, we have to find a way to cover it.' Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Despite bag checks and warnings, young partygoers continue to vape in clubs in Singapore Singapore Ong Beng Seng to plead guilty on Aug 4, more than 2 years after trip to Qatar with Iswaran Singapore LTA, Singapore bus operators reviewing Malaysia's request to start services from JB at 4am Singapore NDP 2025: Veteran Red Lion says each leap 'feels like 5km run' Business Decoupling to save on tax? You may lose right to property if ties go awry Singapore Lessons learnt from Singapore's love-hate relationship with e-scooters Opinion At UN's Wipo, Singaporean Daren Tang strives to create an equal music for haves and have-nots Asia Mass grave with over 100 skeletons in Sri Lanka brings up old wounds Economists have been watching for signs of tariff-related price increases since Mr Trump rolled out his trade policy in the spring. But inflation remained relatively muted, defying expectations and prompting the White House to declare that those who predicted the tariffs would elevate prices were mistaken. Even some forecasters are acknowledging that the tariffs have taken longer to work their way through to consumer prices than initially anticipated. Mr Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve, said on July 30 that the process might be 'slower than expected at the beginning'. 'We think we have a long way to go to really understand exactly how it will be,' he said. Ms Sarah House, an economist at Wells Fargo, said the next three to six months would be 'crunch time,' as more tariff rates solidified. 'Businesses are grappling with the fact that tariffs are here to stay, and as there's more certainty around a higher tariff environment, they are going to be more willing and able to adjust their prices,' she said. 'We're getting to a point where you're going to start to see those feed through.' NYTIMES
Straits Times
10 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Lashing out over Russia and jobs data, Trump displays his volatile side
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox On Aug 1, Mr Trump, confronted with foes and facts that he could not easily control, displayed another side of himself. WASHINGTON - Despite slowing over the first half of the year, the US economy has remained reasonably healthy. Yet when the jobs report for July was released Aug 1, showing a substantial slowdown in hiring, President Donald Trump lashed out, claiming the figures were rigged and firing the head of the government agency that produces them. Mr Dmitry Medvedev was once president of Russia, but now is little more than the Kremlin's favourite online troll. Yet when he got under Mr Trump's skin with provocative posts about nuclear war, Mr Trump, already increasingly infuriated by President Vladimir Putin's unwillingness to work with him to end the war in Ukraine, responded on Aug 1 as if a real superpower conflict could be brewing, ordering submarines into position to guard against any threat. Just days earlier, Mr Trump had returned to the United States from a golf trip, happily flexing his political and diplomatic power. A capitulating Congress had passed his signature domestic policy legislation, despite concerns over its deep cuts to the social safety net. The European Union caved to Mr Trump and his threat of tariffs by announcing a trade deal during the president's trip to Scotland. Emboldened, Mr Trump moved ahead with sweeping tariffs that could reshape the world economy. But on Aug 1, Mr Trump, confronted with foes and facts that he could not easily control, displayed another side of himself, responding with disproportionate intensity and a distinct impatience. His actions were part of a pattern in which he has shown growing intolerance toward those who will not bend to his will. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Despite bag checks and warnings, young partygoers continue to vape in clubs in Singapore Singapore Ong Beng Seng to plead guilty on Aug 4, more than 2 years after trip to Qatar with Iswaran Singapore LTA, Singapore bus operators reviewing Malaysia's request to start services from JB at 4am Singapore NDP 2025: Veteran Red Lion says each leap 'feels like 5km run' Business Decoupling to save on tax? You may lose right to property if ties go awry Singapore Lessons learnt from Singapore's love-hate relationship with e-scooters Opinion At UN's Wipo, Singaporean Daren Tang strives to create an equal music for haves and have-nots Asia Mass grave with over 100 skeletons in Sri Lanka brings up old wounds Mr Jerome Powell, the Federal Reserve chair who has defied Mr Trump's demands for interest rate cuts, has been subject to withering and relentless criticism and insults from the president. Mr Trump has assailed those of his own supporters who have refused to drop their demands for release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. But his actions on Aug 1 were especially striking because they involved fiery reactions to two of the biggest issues on his plate. Russia under Putin, once viewed by Mr Trump as a partner in solving big problems, has left Mr Trump frustrated and facing mocking reminders of his pledge that he could bring the war in Ukraine to an end on his first day in office. With Mr Putin now responding to Mr Trump's peace efforts by launching more attacks and brushing off threats of further US sanctions, Mr Trump has turned against him – and on Aug 1 used his commander-in-chief powers to respond to baiting posts from one of Mr Putin's online attack dogs. Soon after disclosing on his social media platform that he had ordered nuclear submarines 'to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that', Mr Trump fired the head of the Bureau of Labour Statistics, claiming that the employment numbers were being massaged to make him look bad. 'I think he deliberately surrounded himself with yes men and yes women,' said Mr John Bolton, a former national security adviser to Mr Trump. 'It's more evidence he's not fit to be president. This is not the way a president responds to either one of these situations.' In firing the commissioner of the statistics bureau, Ms Erika McEntarfer , who was confirmed on a bipartisan basis in 2024, Mr Trump accused her of a long pattern of rigging the job numbers to hurt him before and after the 2024 election, a claim dismissed by economists across the political spectrum. 'I believe the numbers were phony, just like they were before the election,' Mr Trump said as he left the White House on Aug 1. 'And there were other times. So you know what I did? I fired her, and you know what I did? The right thing.' The move cemented many fears that Mr Trump, who has already fired inspectors general and installed loyalists in the Justice Department, would eventually root out government officials who report politically inconvenient data or intimidate them from publicly disclosing bad news. Mr William W. Beach, a former head of the Bureau of Labour Statistics who was nominated by Mr Trump during his first term, described the firing as 'groundless' and warned that it sets 'a dangerous precedent'. 'This escalates the president's unprecedented attacks on the independence and integrity of the federal statistical system,' Mr Beach said in a joint statement with other statisticians. 'The president seeks to blame someone for unwelcome economic news.' Mr Trump similarly showed little caution earlier in the day in responding to Mr Medvedev, who had said in a social media post that Mr Trump should imagine the apocalyptic television series 'The Walking Dead' and noted the Soviet Union's system for launching a nuclear strike. 'Words are very important,' Mr Trump said. 'And can often lead to unintended consequences. I hope this will not be one of those instances.' Mr Bolton said it was the president who needed to show more discipline. 'He may not even understand what he's doing,' Mr Bolton said. 'It's so natural to him to say outrageous things that he's incapable of thinking about the strategic consequences.' Having surrounded himself with aides unwilling to challenge his impulses, Mr Trump faces no constraints on lashing out impulsively, Mr Bolton said. 'Trump is not deterred by reality,' Mr Bolton said. 'He just says what he wants to say.' In attacking Mr Powell, the Fed chair, Mr Trump has sought to accuse him of mismanaging an expensive renovation of the central bank's headquarters. But when Mr Trump showed up at the building recently to make his case, Mr Powell, in a low-key but remarkable display of defiance, publicly challenged cost figures being cited by the president.
