Germans have gained a reputation of late for the reluctance to have kids. But a dramatic increase in pregnancies among migrant women has helped push the birth rate up to a level not seen in four decades.
German women are having more children than at any time in the last quarter of a century, as for the third year in a row the birth rate in the ageing Bundesrepublik grew, new statistics show.
The Federal Statistics Office reported on Friday that more than 700,000 new babies were born in Germany last year - the highest number in a decade that saw the country's birth rate drop to one of the lowest worldwide.
A baby girl had a high-speed start to life on Thursday morning when her mother gave birth on a train in eastern Germany. The lucky new-born will be able to travel for free in the area for the rest of her life.
Germans reckon the baby drought is because it's simply just too expensive to start a family - and people worry about disrupting their careers or losing their independence, a poll released on Thursday suggested.
Germany has had a dwindling birth rate for years, but 2012 saw a rare increase in the number of babies being born, official statistics released on Thursday showed. Deaths still outweigh births, though.
One in three children are now born out of wedlock in Germany – double the proportion seen two decades ago – according to government figures signalling a strong shift in social norms.
