Hong Kong population falls 1.6% in mid-2020

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Hong Kong population falls 1.6% in mid-2020

On May 8, 2022, people cross a street in Hong Kong. The population of HONG KONG Hong Kong was 7,291, 600 in the middle of the year, down 1.6 percent from mid- 2021, the Census and Statistics Department said on Thursday.

A spokesman for the department said there were 35,100 births and 61,600 deaths, resulting in a natural population decline of 26,500.

There was a net outflow of 95,000 people, with an inflow of 18,300 one-way permit holders and a net outflow of 113,200 other Hong Kong residents.

Over the past five years, the city's fertility rate has been among the lowest in Asian economies, with the city s fertility rate continuing to decline. The recent two years, the plunge in births could be due to the outbreak of COVID - 19 since early 2020, according to the spokesman.

The number of deaths increased gradually over the past five years, along with the ageing trend of the population.

The spokesman said that despite the continued impact of COVID 19, stringent border control and quarantine measures have been in place in Hong Kong, the mainland, and other places around the world, which has resulted in severe interruption of cross-boundary travel.

Hong Kong residents who left before the epidemic may have temporarily stayed in other places or were unable to return to the city. The spokesman said all these could have contributed to the net outflow of Hong Kong residents during the period.

It is believed that the pandemic and related quarantine requirements would have an impact on talent inflow, especially those on short-term employment entry permits.

The problem could be solved when the quarantine and social distancing measures are relaxed, according to the spokesman.

In terms of pooling talent, the government will continue to attract talent from home and abroad to settle in Hong Kong and promote the flow of talent within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

HK population has grown by 0.9% to over 7.48 million by the end of the day.

Net movement includes the movement of Hong Kong residents into and out of Hong Kong for various purposes such as work, study and migration.

Hong Kong residents who are travelling abroad are not required to declare their purpose of travel, so the government does not have any direct statistics on the emigration of its residents. Hong Kong's population has always been mobile as an international city. Net outflows of Hong Kong residents other than one-way permit holders were recorded over the past 10 years.

The number of usual residents was 7,181, 900, while there were 109,700 mobile residents.