US residents are aging and having fewer babies, with fertility rates at a record low and trailing what’s needed for the population to replace itself, part of a widespread global trend with deep economic consequences.
With President Donald Trump’s tough limits on immigration, and his effort to deport some immigrants already in the country, the US may be heading for an era when the median age continues to drift up and the population eventually starts to fall each year. That would be a first for a country built by waves of religious, economic and political refugees from around the world. Economic stress on social safety nets may follow.
