In brief
For the first time in more than a decade, Japan saw a 0.4% increase in births to Japanese nationals during the first half of 2026, with 320,458 babies born. The rise is partly attributed to higher marriage rates in 2024 and 2025 and may signal a modest easing in the country’s long‑term decline in birthrate.
Japan recorded 320,458 births to Japanese nationals in the first half of 2026, a 0.4 percent rise from the previous year and the first increase in 11 years of January‑June periods, according to government data released Wednesday.
The figure is almost on par with the pace in 2025, when the country’s annual births hit a record low of 671,236, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said.
Officials said the modest uptick was partly supported by a rise in marriages in 2024 and 2025, noting that more couples are choosing to start families.
Earlier projections from the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research expected annual births to fall below 680,000 by 2040, and noted that the decline had accelerated faster than anticipated.
While the 0.4 percent increase is small, it marks an early sign that Japan’s aging and low‑birthrate trend may be slowing, observers say.