Average life expectancy in Japan hits record high

The average life expectancy of Japanese people reached record highs of 87.32 years for women and 81.25 for men in 2018, an increase of about five years for both sexes over the course of the 30 years, according to the health ministry. The average lifespan of women inched up 0.05 years from the previous year, posting a record high for the sixth consecutive year. Meanwhile, the figure for men increased by 0.16 years from 2017, topping the record for the seventh consecutive year, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry said. Looking at the latest overseas statistics by country and region, Japanese women ranked second, and men the third — the same as the previous year. Hong Kong topped the global ranking for both females and males at 87.56 and 82.17 respectively.