Italy recorded fewer births last year than at any point since the end of World War II.
The national statistics office in Rome reported on Tuesday that the number of births fell again to just 355,000 – down 3.9% on the previous year.
Women in Italy now have an average of 1.14 children.
By comparison, at the peak of the post-war baby boom in 1964, 1,035,207 births were recorded, with women averaging 2.7 children.
Italy’s low birth rate has long been one of the country’s major problems. Within Europe, only a handful of countries such as Spain and Malta have lower rates.
In Germany, the birth rate stood at 1.32 children per woman in 2025, according to the Federal Statistical Office.
Nearly one in two women fears career consequences
In a study, almost two thirds of respondents (63%) cited “economic, professional or social obstacles” as the reason for not having more children.
Nearly one in two women (49%) said they feared negative consequences for their career if they became pregnant.
Italy’s population is also ageing, with 24,000 centenarians in the country.
The total population as of January 1 remained nearly unchanged at 58.94 million compared with the previous year, with immigration the main reason the figure held steady.