Northeast China—comprising the provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin, and Liaoning—was once among the country’s most prosperous regions in the 20th century, thanks to its strong industrial base, abundant natural resources, and fertile agricultural land. Today, however, it has become China’s hardest-hit region in terms of population decline.
Census data show that between 2010 and 2020, the region lost about 11 million people. The downward trend has continued each year since 2021, with an additional decline of roughly 4 million over the past five years, bringing the total population to around 94 million.
This trend has even given rise to a new term, “Northeast-ification” (东北化), used to describe the population loss and its broader economic consequences, such as falling real estate prices. Northeast China’s decline is driven by two main factors: large-scale outmigration and a natural population decrease in which deaths significantly outnumber births. Many young people have migrated to Beijing or other major cities in southern and eastern China, accelerating aging and depressing fertility rates in the region.
All three northeastern provinces now rank among the most aged areas in China, with roughly 20 percent of their populations aged 65 or older. Birth rates are also among the lowest nationwide, with all three provinces ranking at the bottom in 2024, at approximately 3.3 to 4.3 births per thousand people.
Source: Sina, April 29, 2026
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