In China, a Quieter Lunar New Year Reflects Economic Strain and Unease

During what is traditionally the noisiest and most festive time of the year—the Lunar New Year holidays—many streets across China were strikingly subdued, residents say.

From rural villages to Beijing’s busy shopping district, people across multiple regions in China told The Epoch Times that this year’s holidays were “unusually quiet.” They said foot traffic was sparse, markets were empty, and firecrackers—once synonymous with the holiday—were largely absent. For some, the stillness was unsettling.

The interviewees used pseudonyms out of fear of reprisal.

“It feels like the New Year flavor has disappeared,” Qi Jian, a business owner in Hebei Province, told The Epoch Times. Traveling down his village’s main road during the holiday felt like “entering an uninhabited village,” he said.

Declining Population and Business

In past years, highways were clogged with migrant workers returning for the Lunar New Year. This year, Qi said, people returning home experienced light traffic. Shopping malls that would normally be packed before the holiday were subdued.

In China, migrant workers are laborers who move from rural areas to big cities for jobs. During the Lunar New Year, many return home, usually bringing congestion with them.

“Before, you’d see crowds everywhere before the New Year,” Qi said. “Now you can go down the whole street without seeing cars.”

Official data may offer part of an explanation. In January, China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported that the country recorded 7.92 million births in 2025, with the total population declining for the fourth consecutive year to 1.41 billion.

However, demographics are only part of the story.

In Xi’an, resident Song Wen told The Epoch Times that the absence of visible holiday decorations was the first sign that something had changed.

“In previous years, lanterns were hung across the streets,” he said. “This year, nothing. Bare.”

Song described what he sees as a deepening economic strain.

“Eighty percent of people don’t have money,” he said. “Migrant workers struggle to find steady pay. Some private companies and small businesses have delayed [paying] wages for months. Households facing mortgage and car loan payments are cutting back wherever possible.”

Even residents with stable pensions appeared hesitant to spend, he said.

“I don’t know why,” he said. “Whether they have money or not, no one is consuming.”

In Shandong Province, small-business owner Lin Jian said the change was especially evident in daily commerce.

“Before, the streets were full of people during the New Year,” he said. “Now it’s cold and empty.”

He described a broader hollowing out of rural communities as younger, working-age residents move away.

“The village is disappearing,” he said. “Houses are collapsing. There are fewer and fewer people.”

Firecracker Bans and Heightened Security

Another major difference this year was the strict enforcement of bans on fireworks and firecrackers nationwide.

Local governments in China have imposed varying restrictions on fireworks, citing air pollution and safety concerns. Several residents said enforcement this year appeared tighter than before.

In Hebei Province, fireworks were completely prohibited. Qi described local officials and volunteers patrolling neighborhoods on Lunar New Year’s Eve and detaining residents for setting off firecrackers. The result, he said, was a holiday night that was “completely silent.”

In Beijing, resident Xiao Lin told The Epoch Times that the security presence during the holiday felt heavier than in past years.

“The streets are full of guards and cops in plain clothes,” he said.

So far, the Chinese regime has not publicly linked security measures to specific threats.

Aftereffects of the COVID-19 Pandemic

In Xi’an, Song said, the atmosphere felt “like the holiday had already passed before it even began.”

Xiao said he believes that population losses during the COVID-19 pandemic years were higher than officially reported, particularly in rural areas. These claims could not be independently verified by The Epoch Times. Still, Xiao noted that a sense of loss has contributed to diminished vitality in some communities.

During the pandemic, residents in China described overcrowded crematoriums and empty neighborhoods due to deaths, which went unreported by state media.

Cheng Mulan and Hong Ning contributed to this report.