HONG KONG: China’s marriage rate for the first nine months of this year plummeted to its lowest level in 18 years, fueling concerns about declining births and demographic strain in a country where childbearing remains closely tied to wedlock. A total of 4.65 million couples got married from January to end September, while 2.08 million couples divorced, according to data from the Ministry of Civil Affairs published this week. The number was the lowest in 18 years, local news outlet Yicai
