Births to Japanese nationals rise 0.4% to 320,458 in first half

Japan recorded 320,458 births to Japanese nationals in January–June 2026, a 0.4% increase from a year earlier, health ministry figures show. It was the first increase for the period since 2015.

The increase follows a record-low 671,270 births in 2025, the 10th consecutive annual decline. The ministry released those final annual figures on 30 September 2026.

Tokyo leads the increase

Tokyo recorded 41,745 births, up 4.7%, the largest percentage increase of any prefecture. Across the other 46 prefectures combined, births fell 0.2%. Births rose in 24 prefectures and fell in 23, VnExpress International said, citing The Japan Times.

There were 766,746 deaths in the same six months, more than double the birth count, and deaths exceeded births in every prefecture. Nationally, the difference was 446,288 more deaths than births; that balance does not include migration.

Birth counts and fertility

A rise in births does not by itself establish a rise in the total fertility rate, which measures the average number of children a woman is expected to have over her lifetime. Japan’s rate fell to a record low of 1.14 in 2025. Tokyo’s rate was 0.96, the lowest of any prefecture, in preliminary data published in June.

Tokyo’s family-support measures include free daycare for firstborn children, including those under 3, and 018 Support, which provides ¥5,000 ($32) a month for every child up to age 18. A Tokyo Metropolitan Government children’s-policy official said the increase in Tokyo births was driving the national trend; the statement did not attribute the increase to those policies.