Wash Post: Baby Bust Can Hinder Greece Economy

Greece's economic woes have led to a baby bust, which can hinder recovery for generations to come, The Washington Post reported.

A fertility rate of around 1.35 births per woman is well below the 2.1 rate needed for a stable population, making it among the lowest in Europe, according to the report.

"Well eclipsed by the number of deaths," Greece's birth total in 2017 was the lowest on record (88,553), per the Post.

The baby bust has not been limited to Greece. A U.S. government report found American women are having fewer children and they are having them later in life. Japan's population is shrinking, too, according to a study.

"What we see is a shrinking of the local population," a Greece school principal, Miltos Mastoras, told the Post. "Without the Syrians, there would be half the number as 20 years ago."

While refugees and migration has helped the Greece population, most of them have moved out to other thriving European countries, according to the report.

"At the moment, I can't even consider kids," according to teacher Maria Bersou, 33, who earns $18,000 a year, per the Post. "I can't save money at all."

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