China’s marriage registrations for the first nine months of 2024 saw a significant decline, with 4.747 million couples registering, down 943,000 from the previous year, according to official data. This drop comes amid rising economic uncertainty, high living costs, and growing concerns about the future, which have led many young Chinese to delay marriage or remain single. Despite government efforts to boost marriage and childbearing, including easier marriage registration and stricter divorce laws, the trend reflects broader societal challenges, including the country’s second consecutive year of declining birth rates. The issue has sparked widespread social media discussions and has even drawn attention from President Xi Jinping, who emphasized the need to establish a “new trend of family.”