Fertility rates across OECD countries have halved since 1960, according to a new OECD report. He said the three countries are disproportionately impacted by a rapidly aging population, largely due to improved standards of living, which have a "very strong inverse relationship with fertility rates." These improved conditions have led to a greater opportunity cost for having children, Xu said. Shrinking workforceA decline in fertility rate puts pressure on the economy and the society at large as the working population shrinks. China's policy shiftsIn China, policymakers have been putting a big emphasis on "productivity growth," Xu told CNBC.

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Persons: Leren Lu, Darren Tay, Erica Tay, Tianchen Xu, Xu, BMI's Tay, Tay, Maybank's Tay Organizations: OECD, BMI, Risk, United Nations, Economist Intelligence, Economic Co, National Bureau of Statistics, CNBC, Economist Intelligence Unit Locations: China, Asia, South Korea, Japan, East, Southeast Asia, Maybank