China, Thailand and a host of other Asian countries are likely to have a higher proportion of pensioners than many developed countries by 2050.
The rapid ageing could cause serious problems for the likes of Thailand and China, which are in danger of “growing old before they get rich”, with their median age on track to reach 40 before they generate national income of $30,000 a head, according to projections by Standard Chartered, largely based on data from the UN.
“Getting old before getting rich is one of the biggest medium-term structural challenges in developing Asia and Latin America,” said Samantha Amerasinghe, an economist at StanChart, who added that Brazil was in the same boat.