1300.1.55.001 - Statistics News NSW, Jun 2008  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 06/06/2008   
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NSW Demography Update

NSW DEMOGRAPHY UPDATE

Latest snapshot of NSW

The NSW population at 30 June 2007 was 6,889,100 people, an increase of 71,900 people (1.1%) over the previous 12 months. In 2006–07, there were 90,200 births in NSW and 45,900 deaths, resulting in a natural increase of 44,300. NSW also recorded a net overseas migration gain of 54,900 people and a net interstate migration loss of 27,300 people.

For the latest quarterly information on these and other key demographic indicators see Australian Demographic Statistics (cat. no. 3101.0).


Population change in NSW's Local Government Areas (LGAs)

The latest population estimates for NSW LGAs are available in Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2006–07 (cat. no. 3218.0), released on 31 March.

The NSW population grew by 1.1% in 2006–07. By region, the Sydney Statistical District (SD) grew by 1.2%, with all 43 Sydney LGAs recording population growth. Outside of the Sydney SD, NSW's coastal LGAs combined grew by 1.0% and inland LGAs recorded a growth rate of 0.6%.

For 2006–07, the five fastest growing LGAs in NSW were spread throughout the state. In the Sydney SD, the central west LGA of Auburn (A) (4.2%) recorded the state's fastest growth and nearby Strathfied (A) (2.9%) was also in the top five. The remaining fastest growing LGAs in NSW were in regional areas. These were Palerang (A) (3.9%), adjacent to the Australian Capital Territory, Murray (A) (3.6%) located in the state's south-west on the Victorian border, and Maitland (C) (2.7%) to the north-west of Newcastle.

For further information on regional populations see Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2006–07 (cat. no. 3218.0).


Migration

NSW recorded a net overseas migration gain of 54,900 people for 2006–07. During the same period, NSW recorded a net interstate migration loss of 27,300 people comprising 81,100 arrivals and 108,400 departures. Arrivals were primarily from Queensland (33,500) and Victoria (20,800). Similarly, departures were mainly to Queensland (52,200) and Victoria (23,500).

In 2006–07, the median age of all interstate movers within Australia was 28.5 years. For NSW, interstate departures had a median age of 28.1 years, younger than the median age of 28.7 years recorded for arrivals. Only South Australia and Tasmania experienced a similar trend, with interstate departures being younger than arrivals.

Median age of Interstate Arrivals & Departures 2006-07

(a) Estimates for 2006-07 are preliminary

The latest release of Migration, Australia also includes the first estimates for net overseas migration based on the improved methodology introduced in 2007. As a result, there is a break in time series for net overseas migration figures from the 2006–07 financial year onwards. The publication discusses the improved method and issues related to it, including a time series based on the new methodology from December quarter 2003 onwards to highlight the impact of this change.

For detailed annual information on all aspects of migration see Migration, Australia, 2006–07 (cat. no. 3412.0). For the latest monthly information on overseas migration see Overseas Arrivals and Departures, March 2008 (cat. no. 3401.0).


Population Concepts: Who's in, who's out?

The Information Paper: Population Concepts, Australia 2008 was released on 12 March. This paper will be of interest to those wanting to gain a better understanding of who is included in different estimates or counts of the population produced by the ABS. The paper also discusses key population concepts and identifies the measurement issues associated with them. Population concepts covered include: Population present, Usually resident population, Legal population, Economic population, Working population, and Service population.

For further information see Information Paper: Population Concepts, Australia 2008 (cat. no. 3107.0.55.006).