The number of new marriages recorded in China fell to a record low last year, despite sweeping government efforts to encourage young people to tie the knot and have babies to halt demographic decline in the world’s second-largest economy.

For Chinese authorities, boosting interest in marriage and baby-making is a pressing concern. China has the second-biggest population in the world at

By Farah Master HONG KONG (Reuters) -Marriages in China plummetted by a fifth last year, the biggest drop on record, despite manifold efforts by authorities to encourage young couples to wed and have children to boost the country's declining population.