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Japan’s population falls by half million as birth rate stays low

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Japan’s population contracted by half a million last year, underscoring the country’s mounting challenges in tackling labor shortages and financing its social security system with a shrinking tax base.

The overall population dropped by 550,000 from the previous year to 123.8 million in 2024, extending the streak of declines to 14 years, according to data as of October 2024 released Monday by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. The number of Japanese nationals alone declined by 898,000, the steepest fall since comparable records began in 1950.

The data serve as another reminder of Japan’s bleak demographic outlook, raising alarms over the sustainability of its social welfare system as the number of contributors dwindles. The number of people aged 15 to 64—the core of the labor force—fell by 224,000 to 73.7 million, intensifying the fiscal strain on a nation already carrying the highest debt-to-GDP ratio among developed economies.

Data also show that Japan’s child population declined by 343,000 to 13.8 million, or a record-low 11.2% of the total. That drop follows labor ministry figures released in February that showed births fell to a new historic low, amplifying concerns over the long-term future of domestic industries amid a dwindling supply of new workers.

Japan’s unemployment rate is 2.4%, the lowest among OECD countries, and has stayed below 3% for four years. By 2040, Japan is projected to face a labor shortfall of 11 million, according to an estimate by Recruit Works Institute.

Partially offsetting the overall population shortfall, the number of foreign residents rose for the third straight year, increasing by 342,000 from a year earlier, the latest data show.

Japan’s population woes mirror broader global patterns. South Korea’s fertility rate ticked up slightly last year for the first time in nine years, but at just 0.75, it remains well below the replacement rate. In France, the drop in births accelerated in 2023 to the fastest pace in half a century, while China’s population has declined for three consecutive years.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com



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Tesla hikes Canadian prices and pushes its pre-tariff inventory

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Tesla Inc. is raising prices in Canada and encouraging buyers to snap up cars imported before counter-tariffs were imposed on US-made vehicles.

The electric carmaker’s Canadian website featured a banner on Saturday which said: “Explore pre-tariff priced inventory while supplies last.”

After President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on Canadian goods last month, including 25% on vehicle content produced outside of the US within a US-Mexico-Canada trade pact, Canada announced retaliatory import taxes. Those in-kind levies are designed to mirror the US duties.

Pricing for new orders on Tesla’s site as of April 26 was higher than for the same models listed as being in inventory. For example, the sticker price of long-range Model 3 cars with all-wheel drive was listed as C$79,990 ($57,700) for a new order, but those same 2025 model year vehicles already in inventory were being offered for around C$69,000.  

The company did not respond to a request for comment. The price increases were reported earlier by specialist website driveteslacanada.ca, which said the cost to Canadian buyers for new orders of certain models such as the all-wheel drive Cybertruck are as much as 22% higher.

Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk has come in for criticism in Canada as a result of his support for the US President, who’s repeatedly said he’d like Canada to be part of the US. Musk has said he will devote more time to Tesla starting next month after the carmaker had its worst first-quarter financial results in years.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com



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Kevin Hart says there’s one thing still worth splurging on in this uncertain economy, regardless of income level

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  • Times are tough. But Kevin Hart, one of the most successful comedians and actors on the planet, said there’s one thing he has “no care [about] when it comes to spending”: Experiences. “I think that’s an amazing investment,” he told Fortune.

Kevin Hart knows what it takes to be successful. He was the world’s highest-paid comedian in 2024, earning $108 million. That’s also third-most among Hollywood entertainers overall, more than what Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise made last year. 

That said, times are tough for most Americans right now. With consumer confidence down and market volatility up—partly influenced by global tensions stoked by Trump’s tariffs rollout and his will-he-won’t-he approach with Fed Chair Jerome Powell—Americans are tightening their belts and are being very choosy on how and where they spend their money.

In an interview with Fortune, Hart revealed the one thing he says is absolutely worth splurging on, even in uncertain times.

“Anything experience-driven,” Hart told Fortune. “Anything where you’re able to better understand the world, see the world, and experience the world. I think it’s justified.”

Hart mentioned how he recently took his family to Rwanda to experience and understand the culture there.

“We’re not walking out of it with crazy lessons, but just extreme joy that we were able to see and do things together, create these memories,” he said. “It’s extremely humbling when you’re traveling just to see how the world works and see it through multiple different lenses.”

Hart said “discovery” is a critical human experience, and believes any opportunity where you can experience “what life can provide or present to you, I think that’s an amazing investment.”

“Creating and building memories for me and my family will always be something that I have no care when it comes to spending,” Hart added.

Hart, now 45, has become an entrepreneur in his own right through ventures like HartBeat, his production company (his majority stake was valued at $650 million in 2022), as well as his tequila brand Gran Coramino and the Laugh Out Loud Network. He also earns millions from endorsements every year. His Coramino Fund just recently started accepting applications for its latest round of $10,000 grants, intended for small business owners from marginalized communities.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com



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Trump is aiming for big concessions on trade, Carney warns Canada voters

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Mark Carney said he expects US President Donald Trump will try to extract “major concessions” from Canada in negotiations, and that he takes seriously the president’s stated desire to turn the country into a US state. 

“Take what the president says literally. I take it literally. I always have,” the Canadian prime minister told reporters on the final weekend before national elections. 

“Right from the start, I took it seriously. And because of that, that drives our actions, that drives the strength of our response to their tariffs.” Canada has retaliated against US tariffs with its own import taxes on tens of billions of dollars of American-made goods. 

Trump said in an interview published by Time this week that he’s “really not trolling” when he talks about turning Canada into the 51st US state. He repeated, without evidence, his claim that the US spends hundreds of billions of dollars a year to “take care of Canada.” A large majority of Canadians are opposed to the idea of joining the US. 

Canada’s economy is vulnerable to Trump’s trade protectionism, however: About three-quarters of its exports go to the US, including almost all its oil and gas exports. 

Carney, 60, is campaigning in the battleground province of Ontario on the last weekend of the campaign. Canadians vote on Monday, and most opinion surveys show Carney’s Liberal Party with a narrow lead over the Conservative Party, led by Pierre Poilievre. 

The latest poll from Leger Marketing has the Liberals around 43% and the Conservatives at 39%, with Carney holding about a 10-point advantage on the question of who would make the best prime minister. Leger found the Liberals are far ahead in Quebec but have a smaller lead in Ontario; the two provinces control the majority of the seats in the country’s House of Commons. Conservatives are the dominant political party in much of western Canada. 

Carney has based his campaign on the theme that Canada has no choice but to forge stronger alliances with the rest of the world while renegotiating its relationship with the US. 

“America wants our land, our resources, our water, our country. President Trump is trying to break us so that America can own us,” he told supporters on Saturday, repeating a line he has said frequently. 

Trump has made a number of complaints about trade — saying Canada makes it too hard for the US to do business in sectors including banking and dairy. The president also doesn’t like it that Canadian factories export more than 1 million cars and trucks a year to the US. 

Asked later by a reporter whether he believes Trump would try to use military force against Canada to accomplish his goals, Carney said no.

Carney and Trump have spoken by phone but not met in person since the former central banker took over from Justin Trudeau last month. 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com



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