The demographic sweetspot for China, the 21st century’s driving force of shipping profits, has long passed. This month, Beijing reported its steepest birth rate decline since the Communist Party took power in 1949. Splash Extra investigates what a dwindling population means for global shipping.

Adam Kent, managing director at MSI, explains to Splash Extra that with the population in decline, demand for new property and infrastructure will slow as economic growth slows, with a greater focus on services rather than goods as the population ages.

“This raises the question of whether we expect another ‘China’ to emerge to replace lost shipping demand. India is often cited as the most obvious candidate, given that its population has now surpassed China’s,” Kent says. Read more at Splash247.com.