In the thick of 2020, when COVID-19 was unearthing vast unemployment and breeding global uncertainty, the U.S. saw a peculiar trend. Instead of the anticipated sharp decline, fertility rates dropped only marginally. Key takeaways from a new study, The COVID-19 baby bump in the United States (Martha J. Bailey,
Even the poorest countries TFR are declining, especially African countries which has the highest TFR https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2023/04/05/the-worlds-peak-population-may-be-smaller-than-expected
The article just talked about how increasing social spending and work flexibility increase fertility rates to those who benefit, while those who don’t benefit saw a decline in TFR
The author may be down for that considering he also writes on YIMBY stuff