BEIJING - The problematic gap between the number of boys and girls born in China was reduced slightly in 2012, the National Population and Family Planning Commission (NPFPC) said Tuesday.

The gender ratio stood at 117.7 newborn boys for every 100 baby girls in 2012, a decline of 0.08 year on year, according to the census data released by the National Bureau of Statistics.

The figure is still higher than the warning level and the country faces an arduous task in fixing its gender imbalance, an official with the NPFPC said.

A normal gender ratio at birth should stand from 103 to 107 boys for every 100 girls, the unidentified official said, adding that China will work hard to cope with the problem.

Since fetal ultrasound examination became common in China in the 1980s, the country's boy-to-girl birth ratio has been hovering at a high level, reaching a record high of 120.56 in 2008.

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