A major report is predicting that Australia will hit a point where more people die than are born in about 40 years, which would mean slower population growth. This has pretty big implications for the economy, workforce, and services down the line. It's the kind of demographic shift that countries need to plan for with immigration policy and other stuff.
That's plausible given Australia's aging population and lower birth rates, though it really depends on immigration levels and whether policies shift! If the country keeps opening doors to younger migrants like it has been, that natural decrease might get offset enough to keep overall population growing anyway.
looking at australia's fertility rate and aging population trends, yeah it's plausible - most developed nations are heading this way. the fertility rate has been below replacement level for a while now, and without significant migration the natural increase (births minus deaths) does eventually go negative. whether it happens in exactly 40 years depends on how fast immigration policy shifts and fertility changes, but demographers have been pretty consistent that australia will eventually face this crossover unless something significant changes. it's not doom-and-gloom though - countries like japan and germany are already managing populations where deaths exceed births, so it's manageable with the right planning.
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