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說真的，我們需要更多孩子。美國生育率下滑的速度創下了記錄，《華爾街日報》新發布的一篇報道援引疾控預防中心發布的數據發出警告，生育率越低意味著驅動經濟發展的人口越少，而支付稅基以負擔老年人福利的人數也越少。
雅虎財經頻道的Jeff Macke說，“這是我們看到的首個給經濟長期發展造成切實威脅的征兆”。美國需要2.1的生育率才能保持人口穩定。
2013年，女性人均生育率只有1.86，而更少的出生率和下滑的人口就意味著更低的消費水平。Macke 說，“這里說的是許多可支配收入，尿布以及一切與孩子有關的事物都是發展經濟的印鈔機”。
那么，為什么出生率會下滑呢？這應歸因于2009年結束的那次經濟衰退。Macke說，1981年后出生的這一代對經濟局勢持懷疑態度。“他們成年時趕上了互聯網泡沫破滅和住房危機，因此他們對股市此類事物不信任是有緣由的，目前買房對他們來說是一個可笑的概念”。對經濟的擔憂外加生育孩子的成本讓他們推遲計劃并減少生育的子女數量。
生育率下降的另一原因是女性努力地在工作和生活中取得平衡，帶著職業目標進入職場的女性可能會擱置生育計劃。臉譜網和蘋果公司今年早些時候因為公司女性職員支付冷凍卵子的費用而登上報紙頭條。他們的動機是希望能夠留住并增加公司的女性雇員。（中國進出口網）
Nokidding! We need more babies. American fertility rates are declining at arecord pace. A new Wall Street Journal report citing data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that fewer births mean less workers to drive the economy and fewer people paying into a tax base to finance benefits for theelderly.
"Thisis one of the first signs we're seeing of a real tangible threat to the longterm economy," says Yahoo Finance's Jeff Macke. The U.S. needs 2.1 children per woman to keep the population stable.
In2013, women were only averaging 1.86. Fewer babies and a declining population means less consumer spending. "You're talking about a lot of disposable income.Diapers, anything related to a baby is just a money printing machine for the economy," Macke says.
So,why the decline? It could be a hangover from the recession that ended in 2009.Macke says, the Millennial generation is skeptical of the economy. "They came of age during the dotcom meltdown and then the housing meltdown. So they have reasons to distrust things like the stock market. Buying a house is just a ludicrous proposition right now." Economic concerns combined with the costs associated with starting a family are influencing this generation to wait longer and have fewer children.
Another factor in the declining rates is the delicate balance of work and life that today's women battle with. Women are heading into the workforce with careergoals that may put their family planning on hold. Facebook (FB) and Apple(AAPL)made headlines earlier this year by offering to cover the cost offreezing eggs for their women employees. An incentive they hope will retain and boost the amount of women in their workforce.
