It’s official. Australia has lost 73,900 migrants since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to Q4 population data released yesterday by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS):
Three consecutive quarters of negative NOM.
As shown above, Australia has recorded three consecutive quarters of negative net overseas migration (NOM), specifically:
- -7,800 in Q2 2020
- -41,200 in Q3 2020
- -24,900 in Q4 2020
All major jurisdictions experienced negative NOM over these three quarters, as illustrated below. Victoria (-40,938) has been hardest hit:
Victoria has been hit hardest by the loss of migrants.
Because of the loss of migrants, the nation’s population only grew by 23,600 over the last three quarters of 2020:
Big slowdown in population growth.
Over the same three quarter period, Victoria lost 30,700 people whereas the other major states all gained population:
Victoria loses lots of people.
The latest federal budget projected negative NOM of -96,600 in 2020-21 and -77,400 in 2021-22:
The federal budget projected negative NOM in 2020-21 and 2021-22.
The 2020-21 projection is likely to be exceeded based on these figures.
