Marriage in China:

As much as weddings in China have changed, so too has marriage itself. Gay union may still be out, but looser attitudes towards sex, marriage and divorce have led to a more colourful national love life. As late as 1989, six out of seven newly married couples would not have had sex before the paperwork was complete. Now, as many as 70% of young adults in urban areas have indulged. These numbers, according to Li Yinhe, of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, reveal the arrival of a sexual revolution that was long overdue. Ms Li also reckons that the rise in the divorce rate--from 3% in the 1970s to 14% today--is a healthy development, indicating that unhappy couples are no longer discouraged from divorcing in the interest of "stability".