The fading of boy preference in regions where it was strongest has been astonishingly rapid. The natural ratio is about 105 ...

The bias in favour of boys is shrinking in developing countries even as a preference for girls emerges in the rich world ...

It might be because there’s less bias against girls, and possibly more bias against boys. ... 40 percent would prefer a boy and 28 percent a girl. The rest said they had no preference. ...

Preference for boys is fading among regions where it was strongest at a rapid rate. Credit: Getty Images In 2010 an Economist cover called the mass abortion of girls “ gendercide ”.