A rock and a hard place: India's population is growing, as China's falls

3/23/24 8:00PM

A rock and a hard place

‍There are no easy solutions for Indian authorities. India’s environmental problems play out against a backdrop of sweltering global temperatures and international pressure to reduce emissions… both of which have to be balanced against providing energy and industry for the country’s burgeoning population.

Indeed, India overtook China’s long-held position as the world’s most populous country last April, having counted over 1.4 billion residents. Looking ahead, India’s population is virtually guaranteed to keep reaching new heights for decades to come.

China saw its numbers fall for a second consecutive year in 2023, as the recent pivot to a three-child policy failed to kickstart birth rates, which have fallen to record lows. India’s population, however, is showing no signs of slowing down — and, unlike China, the US, and several other major economies, its population is actually getting younger, with some 86,000 babies born on average every day in India.

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The UAE’s OPEC exit will hit the group in the barrels

After just shy of 60 years in OPEC, its membership even predating its status as a nation-state, the United Arab Emirates yesterday announced its shocking departure from the oil production group, effective May 1, as the knock-on effects of the Iran war continue to play out across the Middle East and the energy landscape.

For context, the UAE produces the third-highest amount of oil in the group, per April data and OPEC’s latest set of annual statistics.

According to the cartel’s 2025 Annual Statistical Bulletin, the OPEC group was collectively exporting some 19 million barrels of crude oil a day last year, with the United Arab Emirates accounting for some 14% of that daily output.

UAExit means UAExit

The nation, whose energy minister told Reuters yesterday that the decision was taken “after a careful look at current and future policies related to level of production” and wasn’t made following discussions with any other country, made up a healthy share of the group’s total confirmed crude oil reserves, as well.

Of the 12 nations in the core group, which was founded by just five oil superpowers back in September 1960, only two (Iraq and Saudi Arabia) exported more barrels of crude oil daily, pumping out 3.36 million and 6.05 million barrels, respectively, each day to nations around the world.

For its part, the UAE said it will “continue its responsible role by gradually and thoughtfully increasing production, in line with demand and market conditions,” per the official state news agency. Clearly, the nation now wants a little more control of just how much oil it can pump around the world, with the UAE having to eat a large proportion of lost revenues due to its healthy abundance and OPEC restrictions.