Axios Markets title: U.S. of Aging
By: Emily Peck and Matt Phillips
Date: 23 June 2023
“The median age in the U.S. reached a record high last year, rising to 38.9 years, and it’s likely only going up from here, per Census Bureau data out yesterday, Emily writes.
Why it matters: Decades of lower birth rates and increasing (until recently) life expectancy means older folks make up an ever larger share of the population.
- This has all kinds of implications for the economy, particularly in the workforce where the aging population is keeping the labor market tight.
- The aging workforce could drive worker shortages for years to come — especially in health care, which will become even more crucial as we gray.
Flashback: In 1980, the median age was 30.
Zoom out: The U.S. is still a younger country than its European peers, as the New York Times points out. “Immigration has historically kept the United States young,” writes Dana Goldstein.
- But immigration has slowed in recent years. “
Sources:
https://www.axios.com/newsletters/axios-markets-8446de16-e038-4918-b46d-6651acf4f327.html
and
https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2023/population-estimates-characteristics.html
and
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/22/us/census-median-age.html
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