A long-term demographic shock has begun in Asia: as birth rates have fallen, the population is getting older. The details vary from country to country, but this shock will have major socioeconomic effects, in particular because of the growing imbalance between economically active and economically inactive members of the population. The problem is not unrelated to the current trade war between China and the West. A range of policies are being deployed to mitigate the effects. The aim is evidently to stimulate innovation in order to increase productivity.