The number of permanent residents in Beijing and Shanghai both dropped in 2017, reports the 21st Century Business Herald¹.

 

《21世纪经济报道》报道，2017年北京上海的永久居民数量双双下跌。

 

It is the first time that China's two biggest cities have seen the number of permanent residents decline at the same time since 1978.

 

The number of permanent residents in Beijing stood at 21.707 million by the end of 2017, 22,000 less than the end of 2016.

 

The figures in Shanghai came in at 24.183 million, a decline of 16,000 year-on-year.

 

Authorities in Beijing hope to cap the population at 23 million by 2020. Officials in Shanghai want to keep the numbers around 25 million by 2035.

 

"Removing low-end industries and illegal buildings, high housing prices and the low birth rate will stop the rapid population increases in Beijing and Shanghai," said Ding Jinhong, a demography² researcher at East China Normal University. "But it is uncertain whether the number will keep on falling," added Ding.

 

The 2017 population figures for China's major southern cities, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, will be published in the near future.

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