It’s not just China’s total population that’s falling

The number of people in China’s towns and cities is in decline

THE FUTURE has already arrived in China, claims Lawrence Lek, an artist, in his influential video-essay “Sinofuturism”. The narration unfolds against a background of cityscapes and factories, combining “gloss with grime”. China’s sprawling metropolises are the source of the country’s economic might and technological progress. When its workforce peaked in 2016 and its population began to shrink six years later, China’s leaders could console themselves with the thought that its towns and cities still had room to grow.

This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline “Cities on the shrink”

From the January 10th 2026 edition

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