Japan's has one of the world's oldest populations, and it is shrinking at a record rate

Japan's population is declining at record speed while the number of foreign nationals residing in the country has risen to a record high, according to government data released Wednesday. The data show the total number of Japanese nationals in the country fell by about 800,000 people in 2022, the 14th consecutive year of population decline, according to the Reuters news agency.

The data released by Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications highlighted the extent to which the country's population is aging and the increasingly significant role that foreign-born immigrants are now playing in Japanese society. A record 3 million foreign nationals were living in the country as of January 2023, when the data was tabulated.

Japan's overall population fell to 125.42 million, a decrease of about 511,000 on the previous year, the study shows.