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China’s ‘Silver Economy’ Is Thriving as Birthrate Plunges
生育率下降使中国“银发经济”繁荣
For more than a decade, Li Dongmei operated a series of kindergartens and schools for young children, withstanding the realities of China’s declining birthrate.
十多年来，李冬梅经营着好几家幼儿园和幼儿学校，经受住了中国出生率下降的现实考验。
She finally faced the music in 2020.
在2020年，她终于受不住了。
The shrinking number of children meant ever smaller enrollments of babies and toddlers at her schools.
孩子数量减少意味着她学校里婴儿和幼儿的入学人数越来越少。
And she shifted her focus to a different and more abundant set of pupils: the elderly.
于是她将注意力转移到了另一个数量更多的学生群体身上：老年人。
At her education center in Jinan, a city in eastern China, she now offers singing, dancing, music and art classes for seniors.
在她的位于济南（中国东部城市）的教育中心，她现在为老年人提供唱歌、舞蹈、音乐和艺术课程。
She organizes activities and educational trips for her students.
她为学生组织活动和研学旅行。
Unlike schoolchildren who have summer and winter holidays, Ms. Li said, older people take classes all year round. And the classes are full.
李女士说，与有寒暑假的学童不一样，老年人全年都上课。而且班级都满员。
“The biggest economy is the silver economy,” said Ms. Li, 36. “It is bigger than the children’s market.”
“最大的经济就是银发经济，”36岁的李女士说，“这比儿童市场更大。”
In 2022, China’s population shrank for the first time since 1961.
2022年，中国人口自1961年以来首次出现负增长。
Deaths outnumbered births again last year, and the number of people age 60 and over topped 290 million, or one in every five Chinese people.
去年死亡人数再次超过出生人数，60岁及以上人口超过2.9亿，占中国总人口的五分之一。
China’s National Health Commission estimates that the country’s elderly population will grow to more than 400 million by around 2035.
中国国家卫生健康委员会估计，到2035年左右，中国的老年人口将增长到4亿以上。
To address its aging population, China announced that it had approved a plan to raise the country’s statutory retirement age for the first time since the 1950s.
为解决人口老龄化问题，中国宣布已批准一项计划，自20世纪50年代以来首次提高国家法定退休年龄。
One concern is that fewer babies will lead to a smaller labor force that will whittle away at tax revenue and add stress to health care and pensions.
一个担忧是，新生儿减少将导致劳动力规模缩小，这将削减税收收入，并给医疗保健和养老金带来压力。
In a 2021 directive, China’s State Council called for “actively fostering the silver economy” and developing “elderly-friendly industries.”
在2021年的一份指导性文件中，中国国务院呼吁“积极发展银发经济”并发展“老年友好型产业”。
Ms. Li, the education executive who has shut her schools for children, now offers a variety of classes for seniors, including one on how to strut like fashion models on the catwalk.
李女士作为教育主管，已经关闭了儿童学校，现在为老年人提供各种各样的课程，包括如何像时装模特一样在T台上走猫步的课程。
Ms. Li said she teaches her students how to become online influencers with lessons on creating short videos.
李女士说，她也教学生如何成为网络博主，课程内容包括创作短视频。
Also eyeing older customers, Xinjiang Tianrun Dairy, a state-owned company, acquired a smaller rival last year to focus on creating powdered milk for middle-aged and elderly consumers.
同样着眼于老年客户，国有企业新疆天润乳业去年收购了一家规模较小的竞争对手，目的是专注于为中老年消费者生产奶粉。
Nestlé, the Swiss food and beverage maker, cited the sharp decline in births in China last year when it announced plans to close its infant formula factory in Ireland.
瑞士食品和饮料制造商雀巢在宣布计划关闭其在爱尔兰的婴儿配方奶粉工厂时，称中国去年出生率急剧下降是原因之一。
It and Chinese dairy firms have introduced special powdered milk products with health benefits for seniors including preventing muscle atrophy, improving sleep and helping digestion.
雀巢和中国的乳制品公司已经推出了专门为老年人设计的具有保健效果的奶粉产品，这些效果包括防止肌肉萎缩、改善睡眠和帮助消化。
A leading Chinese dairy company, Yili Group, is promoting its products for seniors through television commercials.
中国龙头乳制品公司伊利集团正在通过电视广告推广其面向老年人的产品。
In one, a young couple buys specialized powdered milk — without cane sugar — as a gift for relatives at Chinese New Year.
在其中一个广告中，一对年轻夫妇购买了不含蔗糖的特殊配方奶粉，作为送给亲戚的春节礼物。
It’s not just milk.
不仅仅是牛奶在做出改变。
The Chinese cybersecurity firm 360 Security Technology since 2013 has been making smartwatches for kids that allow parents to contact their children and monitor their whereabouts and internet use.
中国网络安全公司360安全科技自2013年以来一直在为儿童制造智能手表，让父母能够联系孩子并监控他们的行踪和互联网使用情况。
In 2019, citing “the advent of an aging society,” the company introduced smartwatches for seniors with features such as blood pressure and heart rate monitors, location tracking for concerned family members and one-click emergency calling.
2019年，该公司以“老龄化社会的到来”为由，推出了针对老年人的智能手表，这种手表具有血压和心率监测、为重点家庭成员提供位置跟踪以及一键紧急呼叫等功能。
