Best-selling authorJim Rickardshas warned that the declining population in China will be disastrous and has termed it an "epic collapse."
China's population fell in 2022. That's just a start. They will lose 600 million people by 2070. Those left will be older, and more subject to Alzheimer's and dementia. This will be an epic collapse. One more nail in the coffin of the omnipotent China myth, Rickards tweeted.
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The author of "The Death of Money" and "The Road to Ruin"mentioned a New York Timesarticlethat cited the Chinese government saying 9.56 million people were born in China last year while 10.41 million people died. This was the first time that deaths had outpaced births in China since the "Great Leap Forward"Mao Zedongsfailed economic experiment which caused widespread famine and death in the 1960s.
Statistics:According to theNational Bureau of Statistics of the country, births fell from 10.6 million in 2021, marking the sixth straight year of a fall. Chinas overall population currently stands at 1.41 billion and by 2035, 400 million people in China are expected to be over the age of 60, comprising about a third of its population.
Wang Feng,a professor of sociology at theUniversity of Californiatold the New York Times that in the long run, we are going to see a China the world has never seen.
It will no longer be the young, vibrant, growing population. We will start to appreciate China, in terms of its population, as an old and shrinking population, Feng said.
Other prominent names have also expressed their concerns. BillionaireElon Muskreiterated his potential global populationcollapse warning. Population collapse is an existential problem for humanity, not overpopulation! he tweeted.
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Although sales of Porsche’s first EV, the Taycan, fell nearly 50% in 2024, things could be looking up for the sports car maker. After its “launch literally electrified us,” the electric Porsche Macan may spark a comeback this year.
Why did Porsche’s EV sales drop in 2024?
Porsche delivered over 310,700 vehicles globally last year, or about 9,500 less than in 2023. Sales in China led the downfall, plunging 28% from the prior year amid a wave of low-cost domestic EVs entering the market.
In total, Porsche delivered 20,836 Taycan EVs to customers last year, down 49% from 2023. The lower total comes after launching the upgraded 2025 Taycan last year. Porsche also said, “The ramp-up of electric mobility is generally proceeding more slowly than planned” as part of the reason.
In its largest sales market, North America, Porsche delivered over 86,500 vehicles in 2024. Although that’s up a mere 1% from 2023, Porsche’s EV sales also took a hit.
Porsche sold 4,747 Taycan models in the US last year, 37% fewer than in 2023. The 2025 model began arriving at US dealerships last Summer, which helped push sales up nearly 75% in the fourth quarter to 2,358.
Meanwhile, Porsche’s second EV, the electric Macan, could have an even bigger impact. After delivering the first models at the end of September, Porsche delivered 18,278 electric Macans by the end of 2024.’
“This launch literally electrified us. I am therefore particularly pleased that more than 18,000 examples of the all-electric variant have already been delivered,” Porsche AG board member for sales and marketing, Detlev von Platen, said.
Porsche sold 2,771 electric Macan SUVs in the US last year. On a call with reporters (via Automotive News), the company’s North American CEO, Timo Resch, said, “A lot of the consumers that come into the Macan Electric are [new to the] brand.”
Electrek’s Take
I’m not here to say the electric Macan will be Porsche’s savior, but the strong sales start is promising. Porsche has already backtracked on plans for 80% of deliveries to be electric by 2030.
According to recent reports, the electric Cayenne, due out in 2026, could be delayed depending on market demand. The upcoming 718 Cayman and Boxster EVs could also face delays as Porsche plans to keep gas and hybrid models alive longer than expected.
Looking ahead, Porsche also plans to introduce an ultra-luxury electric SUV to sit above the Cayenne, codenamed “K1” internally. It’s expected to compete with Range Rover and Ferrari’s first electric SUVs.
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Elon Musk complains that Tesla is not getting subsidies for its electric truck chargers while calling for the end of electric vehicle subsidies in the US.
However, it wasn’t included in any round of funding, including the latest one announced this week, which should be the latest now that Trump is getting into office and campaigned on ending electric vehicle subsidies.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk contributed more than $240 million to get Trump elected and supported his goal of removing subsidies for electric vehicles.
That’s why it’s surprising to see Musk comment on the news in disappointment. He wrote on X: “Hear we go again (sigh)”.
While this specific project wasn’t funded, 49 other projects shared over $600 million in funding that will deploy more than 11,500 EV charging ports across 27 states, four federally recognized tribes, and the District of Columbia.
Also, while Tesla didn’t get any funding in this round, Tesla has received millions in funding for its charging stations in the previous round.
Electrek’s Take
I think that’s fair. If you are actively lobbying for the end of EV subsidies in the US, a market that is far behind the rest of the world in EV adoption, why should the administration that is investing in correcting that give you the subsidies you are trying to end?
It makes no sense. That’s why I also support California in signaling that if the Federal government removes its EV subsidies, it will replace them at the state level, but Tesla will be left out.
It’s especially fair considering Elon has made it clear that the reason he wants to kill EV subsidies, which Tesla was the biggest beneficiary of, is that he believes it will put more pressure on the competition than Tesla and potentially kill them while only Tesla will remain.
He basically wants to pull the ladder that Tesla used to get where it is now to prevent others from using it.
“Subsidies for me, not for thee” – Elon’s new motto.
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