China saw the largest annual increase in its aged population last year. The number of people aged 60 and above grew by 7.25 million to 167.14 million, representing 12.5 percent of its total population. <br/><br/>In a report relased today, the office of China National Committee on Aging said the number of people in their 80s or older approached 19 million last year, and will rise by 1 million annually, noting the average life expectancy is over 73 years old. <br/><br/>It said the central budget provided 132.6 billion yuan as basic old-age insurance subsidy, demonstrating a 69.7 per cent year-on-year increase. <br/><br/>The report said the country now has 38,000 old-age welfare institutions of various types, which provided services for more than 2.1 million old people.