Romania was one of the EU countries with large population decreases last year. The population increased in 18 EU member states and decreased in ten in 2016, according to data from EU’s statistical office Eurostat, Romania Insider writes.

With a decrease of -6.2 per 1,000 residents, Romania registered the fifth-largest decline in the EU after Lithuania (-14.2‰), Latvia (-9.6‰), Croatia (-8.7‰), and Bulgaria (-7.3‰).

On the other hand, the largest relative increase was observed in Luxembourg (+19.8 per 1 000 residents), Sweden (+14.5‰), Malta (+13.8‰), Ireland (+10.6‰), Austria (+9.5‰), and Germany and Cyprus (both +7.6‰).

Meanwhile, EU’s overall population increased, Eurostat data show. On January 1, 2017, the European Union was estimated to host 511.8 million inhabitants, up from 510.3 million on a year prior.

Romania also registered some of the highest crude death rates in the European Union, of 13 per 1,000 residents, similar to that of Hungary. Only Bulgaria (15.1 per 1,000 residents), Latvia (14.6‰), and Lithuania (14.3‰) registered higher rates. On the other hand, Ireland and Cyprus (both 6.4 per 1,000 residents), as well as Luxembourg (6.8‰) had in 2016 the lowest crude death rate, followed by Malta (7.6‰), the Netherlands (8.7‰), and Spain and France (both 8.8‰).

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