There has been a sharp rise both in the number of people moving into the Netherlands and moving out of the country, figures released by Statistics Netherlands show.
Around 160,000 people settled in the Netherlands in 2011. That is 6,000 more than in 2010. In the same year, some 133,000 people left the country, which is 12,000 more than the year before.
Most of the increased immigration came from within the European Union, both from old member states and new ones. In all, the Dutch population grew by 72,000 last year, which is 9,000 less than in 2010. As of 1 January 2012, the Netherlands officially numbers 16.7 million inhabitants.
Last year saw 180,000 births and 135,000 deaths. The number of births fell by 4,000 as a result of the economic crisis and to a lesser extent also due to a drop in the number of fertile women. Despite the ageing population, the CBS notes, there was no rise in the number of deaths.
(cl)
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