I think OP meant that, given the shrinking population, total GDP won&#x27;t grow, even if per capita GDP does.<p>People routinely conflate GDP growth and GDP per capita growth. For example, US GDP growth seems high relative to other rich countries because the US has more immigration and a higher birth rate. This leads to more GDP, though not necessarily GDP per capita.<p>So, Japan could actually get richer (per person) as their economy shrinks.<p>This also means that defining recession only in total GDP terms may be misleading.