According to Moody's, Europe is expected to reach its demographic peak by 2029, with a population of 453.3 million people, after which it will experience a sustained decline. This shift is expected to begin to weaken public finances, as the rating agency explains. In the United States, the population is projected to reach its peak in 2080 under main projections or in 2043 under a low immigration scenario. Excluding the impact of immigration, the demographic decline has already begun. Currently, the G7 economies have about three working-age people for every person over 65 years old. However, many global economies are affected by these trends. In China, the share of people aged 65 and over has doubled, increasing from 7% to 14% over the last two decades, and Brazil, Thailand, and Turkey are following a similar trajectory. Moody's highlights that demographic changes influence the growth potential of a country, affecting labor supply, productivity, and saving and investment behaviors. Increased pressure on public finances is due, in particular, to the costs of pensions and care. The rating agency notes that budgetary pressures related to the aging population arrive well before populations actually begin to decrease. The decrease in the number of workers will limit production capacity, while the decrease in the number of households and consumers will weaken demand. Therefore, countries will have to rely more on productivity to support growth, according to the report. In France, the number of seniors is expected to rise from 15.3 million today to 21.1 million in 2070, according to the Insee. This evolution will mechanically weigh on public finances: according to a simulation by the Court of Auditors, if per capita and per age group expenditures remained at their 2023 level, public expenditures would reach 60.8% of GDP in 2070, compared to 57% today. The French pay-as-you-go pension system is very sensitive to population aging. If 2.1 contributors funded the pension of one retiree in 2002, they are now only 1.8 and should be 1.3 in 2070. Facing this finding, the Court of Auditors called on French public authorities to address demographic issues in order to limit the damage to public finances. The development of artificial intelligence will only partially compensate for the long-term challenge, according to an analyst at Moody's. "It is a partial solution, because although one can replace and improve the supply of the economy in factories and services, at the same time, robots do not consume - at least not yet - and therefore on the demand side, there will always be this gap, which will slow down growth," he added.