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Wan LixinOpinion deputy editor of Shanghai Daily
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Cost rules out a second child
By Liang Yiwen |
December 9, 2010, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
NEARLY 70 percent of Shanghai residents who took part in a survey said they would be unwilling to have a second child, even if the one-child policy was relaxed, because of the high costs involved.
The survey, released this week by the Shanghai Committee of the Youth League of China, said the monthly cost of raising a child had reached 1,700 yuan (US$255) on average.
That accounted for about 44 percent of a family's disposable income, said the survey based on 240 sets of parents with at least one spouse below the age of 35.
Shanghai's average monthly salary was 3,566 yuan in 2009, according to the Shanghai Human Resources and Social Security Bureau.
Grandparents are a major help to young couples both financially and practically, the survey found.
About 31 percent of couples said their parents paid most of the child-rearing expenses.
And more than 40 percent said their children were raised by grandparents. The children lived with them and were brought home at weekends or the parents visited when they were free.
The percentage reached more than 50 percent among couples who came from one-child families.
Some 37 percent of the couples surveyed lived with their parents and more than 32 percent lived nearby so that grandparents could be easily called on to help with the children.
Almost 87 percent of couples record their children's growth by keeping diaries and taking photographs.
About 80 percent said they enjoyed raising children and took pride in their development.
In a separate survey by the youth league, it was found that young parents felt happier with their lives than people who were unmarried.
The survey, released this week by the Shanghai Committee of the Youth League of China, said the monthly cost of raising a child had reached 1,700 yuan (US$255) on average.
That accounted for about 44 percent of a family's disposable income, said the survey based on 240 sets of parents with at least one spouse below the age of 35.
Shanghai's average monthly salary was 3,566 yuan in 2009, according to the Shanghai Human Resources and Social Security Bureau.
Grandparents are a major help to young couples both financially and practically, the survey found.
About 31 percent of couples said their parents paid most of the child-rearing expenses.
And more than 40 percent said their children were raised by grandparents. The children lived with them and were brought home at weekends or the parents visited when they were free.
The percentage reached more than 50 percent among couples who came from one-child families.
Some 37 percent of the couples surveyed lived with their parents and more than 32 percent lived nearby so that grandparents could be easily called on to help with the children.
Almost 87 percent of couples record their children's growth by keeping diaries and taking photographs.
About 80 percent said they enjoyed raising children and took pride in their development.
In a separate survey by the youth league, it was found that young parents felt happier with their lives than people who were unmarried.
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