Japan has a new record. Now 107677 people live there. They are 100 years old or older. This is 7914 more people than last year. Japan counts these numbers since 1963. Back then only 153 people were so old. Measurements like medicine help people live longer.
Most of these old people are women. Almost 90 percent of the Hundert-Jaehrigen are female. Women live 87 years on average. Men live 81 years on average. Experts say that good health care helps people age well.
Japan has the second old population worldwide. Only Monaco has an even older average age. Women and men have fewer babies now. Also few immigrants move into the country. Therefore the total population shrinks fast.
The country has less than 120 million citizens now. In just 1 year the number drops by 917000. This causes problems for the economy. Workers are missing. The costs for care and pensions grow high.
