Over the last 35 years Europe’s biggest economy had recorded a steady fall in birth rate, which reached a low of 1.49 child for each woman born in the year 1968, said the Federal Institute for Population Research. But women born in the subsequent years are having more children, bringing the birth rate to 1.56 for mothers born in 1973.”The decline in birth rate has stopped,” said Martin Bujard, a researcher at the institute. “On the basis of these numbers, one can even speak of a turning point,” he said, noting that improved childcare options likely contributed to the upswing.

Despite the turnaround, Germany’s birth rate remains below the replacement rate of 2.1 children per woman. The country’s low birth rate has contributed to shaping much of the European economic giant’s policies, including questions surrounding state indebtedness and pensions.