From November 1999 to last October, the growth rate among local residents was recorded at minus 0.03 percent according to result of the fifth population.

“Shanghai is the only city in China to keep a negative population growth rate,” said Gu Yihua, deputy director with the city’s population census office.

“If it weren’t for the family planning policy, the growth rate would be much higher.” Said Gu.

The total population of the city now is 16.73 million, 25.5 percent higher than the figure released in the fourth census in 1990.

“The increasing number of people coming into the city from other provinces is the main reason for the growth,” said Pan Jianxin, director of the Shanghai Statistics Bureau.

About 72 percent of the increase in population is people from other provinces, said fifth population census report, released Wednesday.

The report said the number of laborers from other provinces has climbed quickly in the past few years. Their number is now 3.87 million. Four-fifths of these people are aged between 15 and 44 and men account for 57.6 percent.

However, Shanghai still has its problem as well, such as the growing population of the elderly. Of the total population, the number of people over 65 is growing the fastest, with an increase rate of 62.9 percent.

(Xinhua 04/19/2001)