South Korea’s fertility rate rises for first time in 9 years

Good morning. South Korea’s fertility rate has risen for the first time in almost a decade. Today’s top story explains what drove the turnaround. Also on the agenda:

• Trump’s latest tariff threat

• A father-son boardroom battle in Singapore

• The political rise of the anti-vax movement

South Korea’s fertility rate has risen for the first time in nine years, as a post-pandemic surge in marriages has spurred hopes that the world’s fastest-ageing society may have turned a corner.

The country’s fertility rate — the average number of babies a woman is expected to have in her lifetime — increased from 0.72 in 2023 to 0.75 last year, according to the latest data from the national statistics office.

Although the rate remains the lowest in the world and far below the 2.1 needed to ensure a broadly stable population, this is the first rise since 2015, when it was 1.24.

“There was a change in social values, with more positive views about marriage and childbirth,” said Park Hyun-jung, an official at Statistics Korea, adding that last year’s trend was also driven by an increase in the number of people in their early 30s as well as pandemic delays.

The growing demographic crisis has been a huge challenge for South Korean policymakers, who are grappling with falling economic growth and the increased cost of pensions and healthcare for its ageing population.

Read more about the rare baby bump and whether the momentum can continue.

Here’s what else we’re keeping tabs on today:

• Economic data: Japan releases its latest trade statistics while the US publishes revised fourth-quarter GDP figures.

• EU-India ties: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen begins a two-day visit to New Delhi. The EU chief is planning to ask India to lower its tariffs on cars and wine. (Reuters)

• US-UK relations: Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will meet President Donald Trump at the White House. The visit comes after US lawmakers yesterday expressed concern to the UK about China’s plan to build a massive embassy in London.

Five more top stories

1. Donald Trump has threatened to slap 25 per cent tariffs on imports from the EU, raising the prospect of a broad transatlantic trade war. In remarks during the first cabinet meeting of his second term, the US president lashed out at the bloc, saying it “was formed to screw the United States”, and said the tariffs “will be on cars and all other things”.

• US-Ukraine minerals deal: Trump has said the US will not give Ukraine security guarantees “beyond very much”, as Washington and Kyiv prepare to sign a critical minerals deal on Friday.

• ‘Gold card’: Trump said the US would offer permanent residency and a route to citizenship for wealthy foreigners if they paid $5mn under a new scheme.

2. Taiwan has objected to what it says were unannounced Chinese live-fire naval exercises in busy waters near its south-western coast. Taiwan’s defence ministry said the People’s Liberation Army yesterday notified commercial ships and aircraft through ad hoc radio warnings of “shooting drills” in a training area 40 nautical miles off the municipality of Kaohsiung and neighbouring Pingtung County.

3. A Singaporean billionaire is seeking to oust his son as chief executive of the family’s property company, accusing him of attempting a boardroom coup and poor business decisions. Kwek Leng Beng, executive chair of Singapore’s biggest listed property company, City Developments, filed court papers outlining a family feud that has escalated in recent months, leading to the group suspending its shares yesterday morning.

4. More than $800bn has been wiped off global cryptocurrency markets in recent weeks, as the enthusiasm that swept the crypto industry after Trump’s election victory last year ebbs away. Recent high-profile scandals as well as the largest-ever cryptocurrency theft have also shaken confidence in the industry.

5. Nvidia’s revenues soared in the quarter to the end of January as demand for its AI-focused chips boomed, exceeding Wall Street expectations. The company said its sales increased 78 per cent year-over-year to $39.3bn, above estimates in a Bloomberg survey of $38.3bn.

The Big Read

Vaccine scepticism was long a fringe phenomenon, with anti-vaxxers treated as cranks. But now its leading proponents are grabbing the political limelight in a manner that would have been unthinkable even a few years ago. With traditional political parties around the world struggling to appear relevant, the anti-vaccine movement has become a new anti-establishment political force filling the vacuum.

We’re also reading . . . 

• Hong Kong: The Chinese territory said it will consider legalising gambling on basketball as it grapples with a years-long budget hole.

• Japanese carmakers: The Japanese auto industry’s $18bn of investment in Mexico is looking newly risky amid Trump’s tariff threats.

• Putin’s dealmaker: Former Goldman Sachs banker Kirill Dmitriev, the Kremlin’s go-between with Gulf countries, helped pave the way for US-Russia talks.

• South Korea tech regulation: Ensuring fair competition in the digital sphere risks antagonising the new US administration, writes Haeyoon Kim.

Chart of the day

Millions of Chinese families are suffering from “catastrophic health expenditure” — medical costs that have devastated their household finances. Many experts argue such costly bills are disastrous for family finances but also damaging for the wider economy.

Take a break from the news . . . 

With headlines providing a gloomy forecast for the year ahead, the FT Edit team has compiled a list of eight things you can look forward to in 2025 including sporting glory, advances in vaccines and a once-in-a-lifetime planetary alignment this Friday.