Business
China’s plan to boost birth rates with condom tax and cheaper childcare
Osmond Chia,Business reporterand
Yan Chen,BBC News Chinese
Getty ImagesChinese people will pay a 13% sales tax on contraceptives from 1 January, while childcare services will be exempt, as the world’s second-largest economy tries to boost birth rates.
An overhaul of the tax system announced late last year removes many exemptions that were in place since 1994, when China was still enforcing its decades-long one-child rule.
It also exempts marriage-related services and elderly care from value added tax (VAT) – part of a broader effort that includes extending parental leave and issuing cash handouts.
Faced with an ageing population and sluggish economy, Beijing has been trying hard to encourage more young Chinese people to marry, and couples to have children.
Official figures show that China’s population has shrunk three years in a row, with just 9.54 million babies born in 2024. That is around half of the number of births recorded a decade ago, when China started to ease its rules on how many children people could have.
Still, the tax on contraceptives, including condoms, birth control pills and devices, has sparked concern about unwanted pregnancies and HIV rates, as well as ridicule. Some people point out that it would take a lot more than pricey condoms to persuade them to have children.
As one retailer urged shoppers to stock up ahead of the price hike, a social media user joked: “I’ll buy a lifetime’s worth of condoms now.”
People can tell the difference between the price of a condom and that of raising a child, wrote another.
China is one of the most expensive countries in which to raise a child, according to a 2024 report by the YuWa Population Research Institute in Beijing. Costs are pushed up by school fees in a highly competitive academic environment, and the challenge women have juggling work and parenting, the study said.
The economic slowdown, partly brought on by a property crisis that has hit savings, has left families, and especially young people, feeling uncertain or less confident about their future.
“I have one child, and I don’t want any more,” says 36-year-old Daniel Luo, who lives in the eastern province of Henan.
“It’s like when subway fares increase. When they go up by a yuan or two, people who take the subway don’t change their habits. You still have to take the subway, right?”
He says he is not concerned by the price hike. “A box of condoms might cost an extra five yuan, maybe 10, at most 20. Over a year, that’s just a few hundred yuan, completely affordable.”
Getty ImagesBut cost might be a problem for others, and that’s what worries Rosy Zhao, who lives in the city of Xi’an in central China.
She says making contraception, which is a necessity, more expensive could mean students or those struggling financially “take a risk”.
That would be the policy’s “most dangerous potential outcome”, she added.
Observers appear divided on the aim of the tax overhaul. The idea that a tax hike on condoms will impact birth rates is “overthinking it”, says demographer Yi Fuxian from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
He believes Beijing is keen to collect taxes “wherever it can” as it battles a housing market slump and growing national debt.
At nearly $1tn (£742bn), China’s VAT revenue made up close to 40% of the country’s tax collection last year.
The move to tax condoms is “symbolic” and reflects Beijing’s attempts to encourage people to lift China’s “strikingly low” fertility numbers, said Henrietta Levin from the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
What is also hampering efforts, she adds, is that a lot of the policies and subsidies will have to be implemented by indebted provincial governments – and it’s unclear if they can spare sufficient resources.
China’s approach to urging people to have children also risks backfiring if people feel the government is being “too intrusive” about what is deeply personal choice, she said.
Recently there have been media reports that women in some provinces have received calls from local officials asking about their menstrual cycles and plans to have children. The local health bureau in Yunnan province said such data was needed to identify expectant mothers.
But this has not helped the government’s image, Ms Levin said. “The [Communist] party can’t help but insert itself into every decision that it cares about. So it ends up being its own worst enemy in some ways.”
Getty ImagesObservers and women themselves say the country’s male-dominated leadership fails to understand the social changes underpinning these broader shifts, which are not exclusive to China.
Countries in the West and even those in the region, such as South Korea and Japan, have been struggling to lift birth rates as their population ages.
Part of the reason is the burden of childcare, which disproportionately falls on women, research shows. But there are also other shifts, such as a decline in marriage and even dating.
China’s measures miss the real problem: the way young people interact today, which increasingly avoids genuine human connections, Mr Luo from Henan said.
He points to rising sales of sex toys in China, which he believes is a sign that “people are just satisfying themselves” because “interacting with another person has become more of a burden”.
Being online is easier and more comforting, he says, as “the pressure is real”.
“Young people today deal with way more stress from society than people did 20 years ago. Sure, materially they’re better off, but the expectations placed on them are much higher. Everyone’s just exhausted.”
Business
Netflix grants Warner Bros. Discovery 7-day waiver to reopen deal talks with Paramount Skydance
Warner Bros. Discovery on Tuesday said it will reopen deal talks with Paramount Skydance under a seven-day waiver from Netflix to explore “deficiencies” in Paramount’s offer to buy the entirety of WBD.
The legacy media company has a pending transaction with Netflix for its streaming and studio businesses. Paramount launched a hostile tender offer straight to WBD shareholders at $30 per share after losing out to Netflix in a bidding war.
“Netflix has provided WBD a limited waiver under the terms of WBD’s merger agreement with Netflix, permitting WBD to engage in discussions with Paramount Skydance (“PSKY”) (NASDAQ: PSKY) for a seven-day period ending on February 23, 2026 to seek clarity for WBD stockholders and provide PSKY the ability to make its best and final offer,” Warner Bros. Discovery said in a release.
“During this period, WBD will engage with PSKY to discuss the deficiencies that remain unresolved and clarify certain terms of PSKY’s proposed merger agreement,” it said.
Paramount leadership has repeatedly said its $30 per share, all-cash offer is not its “best and final.” Last week the company sweetened its offer with additional “enhancements,” but stopped short of raising the per-share value.
Warner Bros. Discovery said Tuesday that a senior Paramount representative informed a WBD board member that it would pay $31 per share if deal talks were to reopen.
Tune in at 4:30pm ET as Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos joins CNBC TV. Watch in real time on CNBC+ or the CNBC Pro stream.
After the limited waiver period, Netflix will retain its matching rights provided by the merger agreement, WBD said.
“Throughout the entire process, our sole focus has been on maximizing value and certainty for WBD shareholders,” said WBD CEO David Zaslav in a statement. “Every step of the way, we have provided PSKY with clear direction on the deficiencies in their offers and opportunities to address them. We are engaging with PSKY now to determine whether they can deliver an actionable, binding proposal that provides superior value and certainty for WBD shareholders through their best and final offer.”
WBD also on Tuesday announced a special meeting of shareholders will be held on March 20 and said its board continues to unanimously recommend the Netflix deal over Paramount’s offer.
Netflix said in a statement the shareholder meeting date marked an “important milestone for our transaction with WBD.”
“While we are confident that our transaction provides superior value and certainty, we recognize the ongoing distraction for WBD stockholders and the broader entertainment industry caused by PSKY’s antics,” Netflix said. “Accordingly, we granted WBD a narrow seven-day waiver of certain obligations under our merger agreement to allow them to engage with PSKY to fully and finally resolve this matter.”
Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery were up about 3.5% Tuesday. Shares of Paramount were up about 6%.
Raising regulatory concerns
Either proposed purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery assets comes with regulatory questions.
Media industry insiders and lawmakers have questioned whether Netflix’s proposed deal would win approval as it would bring together two of the top streaming services and could result in higher prices for consumers.
Netflix leadership has repeatedly said the company believes it would win regulatory approval for the deal because it would preserve jobs in a challenged media landscape rife with layoffs.
Paramount has sounded the alarm to WBD shareholders, however, and argues its offer is not only better but would more easily garner government support.
On the flipside, Paramount’s offer has raised questions of foreign funding and antitrust considerations in bringing together two large portfolios of pay TV channels and two major film studios.
Paramount’s deal is financed in part by sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia; Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates; and Qatar. Paramount has said those entities have agreed to forgo any governance rights.
In its statement on Tuesday, Netflix called out the foreign funding, which it said it expects to come under scrutiny from international regulators, including the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). Netflix said it also expects European authorities “to scrutinize the Middle Eastern investors in PSKY’s consortium and to be skeptical of claims that they are purely passive investors.”
Given Europe’s track record of antitrust enforcement, it’s possible regulatory battles for either deal would be won or lost in that market. Of course, the question still looms of how President Donald Trump will view either transaction. Trump recently said he hadn’t been involved in the process so far and didn’t plan to be, though he has reportedly met with executives from each camp.
Netflix’s statement on Tuesday “unsurprisingly points to a number of arguments Netflix believes it has in its favor,” according to an analyst note from Raymond James on Tuesday, “including better prospects for approval, a clearer national security picture, and financial security.”
Michael Selig, President Donald Trump’s nominee to serve as Commodity Futures Trading Commission chairman, testifies in a Senate Agriculture Committee hearing on his nomination on Capitol Hill, Nov. 19, 2025.
Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed an amicus brief in federal court on Tuesday to assert the agency’s right to enforce prediction markets instead of individual states, according to its new chairman, Michael Selig.
Selig argued in a Monday Wall Street Journal op-ed that the CFTC has always had authority over prediction markets and determining whether the event contracts constitute gambling, as critics allege. Selig noted nearly 50 active legal cases against prediction markets and said the CFTC would be stepping in to prevent state encroachment.
“The CFTC will no longer sit idly by while overzealous state governments undermine the agency’s exclusive jurisdiction over these markets by seeking to establish statewide prohibitions on these exciting products,” he wrote.
The move comes as prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket face legal challenges in multiple states over event contracts. The platforms allow users to bet on the outcomes of events in pop culture, sports, entertainment and more.
Critics of prediction markets have argued that the offerings amount to little more than gambling, though Kalshi has defended its platform and argued that it abides by federal regulations. Sports betting on the prediction platforms has drawn comparisons to legalized sports betting in the U.S.
In his first public comments as CFTC chairman at the end of January, Selig said he was prepared to draft new, clear rules to govern prediction markets and revisit the agency’s rules on involvement in federal and circuit court cases.
“Where jurisdictional questions are at issue, the Commission has the expertise and responsibility to defend its exclusive jurisdiction over commodity derivatives,” he said at the time.
In his Monday op-ed, Selig said event contracts “serve legitimate economic functions” and operate under CFTC rules as “swaps” rather than gambling. He also posited that trading on event contracts is beneficial for the market and for Americans at large.
“These exchanges aren’t the Wild West, as some critics claim, but self-regulatory organizations that are examined and supervised by experienced CFTC staff,” Selig wrote.
In a Tuesday video posted to X, Selig said his message to those who challenge the CFTC’s authority is clear: “We will see you in court.”
“Today, the CFTC is taking an important step to ensure that these markets have a place here in America and have the integrity and resilience and vibrancy that our derivative markets deserve,” he said.
Selig said the amicus brief would be filed in the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in support of Crypto.com in its dispute with the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
CNBC could not verify that the amicus brief had been filed.
Disclosure: CNBC and Kalshi have a commercial relationship that includes a CNBC minority investment.
Stock prices in London have closed mostly higher, as investors shored up bets on the Bank of England cutting interest rates in March after unemployment increased, while the pound fell.
The FTSE 100 index closed up 82.48 points, 0.8%, at 10,556.17, a new record high. The FTSE 250 ended up 180.35 points, 0.8%, at 23,555.82, and the AIM all-share closed down 4.73 points, 0.6%, at 806.61.
In European equities on Tuesday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed 0.5% higher, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt ended up 0.8%.
The pound was lower at 1.3531 US dollars on Tuesday afternoon from 1.3629 dollars at the equities close on Monday. The euro stood lower at 1.1830 dollars from 1.1854. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at 153.61 yen compared to 153.44.
The unemployment rate came in at 5.2% for the three months ended December, up from 5.1% in the three months ended November. The data was above the FXStreet-cited consensus, which had pencilled in another 5.1% reading.
The ONS estimated that the number of payrolled employees in the UK fell by 121,000, or 0.4%, in the year to December 2025, and decreased by 6,000 on-month.
Pantheon Macroeconomics analyst Rob Wood said: “The rise in unemployment in December and drop in whole-economy average weekly earnings growth will grab the attention, and suggest sharply fading inflation pressures.
“Combined with payrolls still falling slightly the (Monetary Policy Committee) doves have enough to cut rates in March rather than waiting until April, so markets would be right to ramp up the probability of a March cut.”
Deutsche Bank analyst Sanjay Raja said the data “won’t do much to assuage fears that the jobs market remains weak”.
“How high will the jobless rate go? Today’s data suggests there may be a little more room to go before we hit the cyclical peak in the unemployment rate.
“The single month jobless rate already sits at 5.4%. HMRC data suggests more redundancies are ahead. And almost every single survey points to limited hiring plans.
“This will put continued upward pressure on the jobless rate. Put simply, the jobs market remains stuck.”
In response to renewed interest rate cut hopes, Barratt Redrow was up 3.1%. Other property stocks also performed well, with real estate investor Land Securities up 2.4% and fellow housebuilder Persimmon 1.1% higher.
Stocks in New York were mixed, after being closed on Monday for a long weekend. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was marginally higher, the S&P 500 index down 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite 0.2% lower.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was unchanged from Friday at 4.05%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury slimmed to 4.68% from 4.70%.
In London, Antofagasta fell 5.7% as it posted revenue and operating profit below analyst expectations.
The London-based miner operating in Chile said pre-tax profit climbed 53% to 3.16 billion US dollars (£2.3 billion) in 2025 from 2.07 billion dollars (£1.51 billion) in 2024.
Revenue increased 30% to 8.62 billion dollars (£6.31 billion) from 6.61 billion dollars (£4.84 billion), albeit a notch below Peel Hunt expectations of 8.68 billion (£6.36 billion). Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation grew 52% to a “record” 5.20 billion dollars (£3.81 billion) from 3.43 billion dollars (£2.51 billion).
Operating profit from subsidiaries and share of total results from associates and joint ventures climbed 64% to 3.43 billion dollars (£2.51 billion) in 2025 from 2.08 billion dollars (£1.5 billion) in 2024. It was slightly below market consensus according to Peel Hunt of 3.45 billion dollars (£2.52 billion).
Antofagasta recommended a final dividend of 48 US cents per share for 2025, more than doubled from 23.5 cents a year ago. This brings the total payout for 2025 to 64.6 cents, more than doubled from 31.4 cents.
Peers Endeavour Mining, Anglo American and Fresnillo were also down 4.2%, 2.4% and 2.1% respectively.
On the FTSE 250 index, Raspberry Pi led the way as its shares jumped 36%.
Bloomberg News reported that the gains were driven by a social media post which said AI agents such as OpenClaw could drive demand for the firm’s single-board computers. The post on X attracted 200,000 views.
A spokesperson for Raspberry Pi told Bloomberg that “there’s nothing from the company side beyond what’s already in the public domain”.
SSP Group shares were up 6.6% after UBS raised its rating on the stock to “buy”.
Applied Nutrition was 6.2% higher as it raised its revenue forecast for its current financial year above market expectations, citing a strong first-half performance.
The Merseyside-based wellness brand now sees revenue for the financial year ending July 31 of around GBP140 million, above market consensus of £133.5 million. Revenue will be up 31% from £107.1 million in financial 2025, when it was in turn up 24% from £86.2 million in financial 2024.
The positive results are thanks to the company’s “channel diversification across UK high street health retailers, grocers and discounters” alongside “accelerated demand for a number of…product launches” in the first half of financial 2026, it said.
Among smaller caps, boohoo Group shares fell 6.7% as it confirmed it is preparing to raise £35 million in fresh equity and is in talks with its lenders to create additional liquidity.
The online fast fashion retailer that trades as Debenhams said the equity will be used to pay down its debt and provides the increased financial flexibility to purse its turnaround plan.
It is speaking to its lending syndicate about improved covenant amendments due to its expected reduced leverage.
Boohoo said chief executive Dan Finley and directors Mahmud Kamani and Iain McDonald all will participate in the equity raise at 20 pence per share. Total support for the equity raise from directors and institutional shareholders is in excess of £24 million, boohoo said.
Brent oil was lower at 67.17 dollars a barrel on Tuesday afternoon from 68.42 dollars late on Monday. Gold was down at 4,882.00 dollars an ounce from 4,985.30 dollars.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, up 260.00p at 7,690.00p, Barratt Redrow, up 11.70p at 385.60p, Airtel Africa, up 10.40p at 346.60p, Pearson, up 25.80p at 929.80p and Compass Group, up 58.00p at 2,111.00p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Endeavour Mining, down 176.00p at 4,510.00p, Antofagasta, down 129.00p at 3,617.00p, Weir Group, down 80.00p at 3,430.00p, Anglo American, down 79.00p at 3,499.00p, and Fresnillo, down 80.00p at 3,734.00p.
On Wednesday’s economic calendar, the UK will see CPI and PPI data at 7am GMT, with French CPI later and US building permits and industrial production data to follow in the afternoon.
Wednesday’s corporate calendar has full year results from defence contractor BAE Systems and miner Glencore, among others.
Contributed by Alliance News
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