The Japanese government said on Wednesday that by the beginning of this year, Japan's national population had fallen below 120 million for the first time in 42 years to 119,736,483, highlighting the serious challenges faced by the country in dealing with the declining birth rate. According to data from Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, as of January 1, the Japanese population decreased by 917,000 compared to a year ago, the biggest drop since comparable data were available in 1968. Meanwhile, the number of foreign residents increased by 354,000 to a record number of 4,031,159. Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications began compiling relevant data in 2013. Faced with labor shortages, Japan is gradually easing restrictions on the introduction of foreign labor. The number of foreign residents increased for the fourth year in a row as more and more people went to Japan to find employment opportunities.

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