Sorry, Valentine’s Day is cancelled: we’re in a relationship recession. Analysis of demographic data by the Financial Times shows a dramatic decline in married or cohabiting young adults, with tanking “relationship formation” rates in countries as diverse as Thailand, Finland, Peru, South Korea and Turkey. In the US, the marriage rate fell by 54% between 1900 and 2022, while younger people aren’t even dating: the percentage of 16- to 18-year-olds who report having dated has dipped under 50%, the Atlantic reports, “with the decline particularly steep in the past few years”.

My immediate thought is: well, obviously. The resurgence of the far right, accelerating climate collapse, geopolitical instability and deep economic precarity aren’t exactly Marvin-Gaye-and-oysters vibes. As relationship red flags go, isn’t getting horny amid imminent global catastrophe one of the biggest, reddest ones? I just have to imagine Elon Musk and I’m ready to be walled up in an anchorite’s cell.

In the immediate aftermath of the US election, women (sorry, “childless cat ladies”) expressed similar sentiments; not pussyhats this time, but a sort of repulsed withdrawal. That included renewed interest in South Korea’s 4B feminist movement, which rejects marriage, childbirth, dating and sex. “Doing my part as an........

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