According to results published on July 28 by Eurostat, the European Union statistics agency, the population of the European Union (EU27) was 502.5 million inhabitants as of January 1st 2011, an increase of 1.4 million people compared to January 1st 2010 and an annual growth rate of +2.7‰. This rate is the result of natural population growth (+1.0‰) combined with the net migration rate (+1.7‰).

As for the Eurozone (EZ17), its population has also increased by 1 million people (an annual rate of +3.1‰) going from 330.9 million inhabitants on January 1st 2010 to 332.0 million as of January 1st 2011. This represents natural growth of +1.0‰ and a net migration rate of +2.1‰.

In 2010, within the EU27, 5.4 million children were born, the birth rate remaining unchanged at 10.7 births per thousand inhabitants. The highest birth rate was recorded in Ireland (+16.5‰) and the lowest in Germany (+8.3‰). Over the same period, there were 4.8 million deaths, representing a gross mortality rate of 9.7 deaths per thousand inhabitants. The highest mortality rate was observed in Bulgaria (+14.6‰) and the lowest in Ireland (+6.2‰). The difference between these two rates corresponds to natural population growth, the highest being observed in Ireland (+10.3‰) and the lowest in Germany and Romania (-2.2‰).

It was further noted that population growth in the EU27 is due predominantly to migratory movements (60%), with the highest net migration rate being that of Luxemburg, at +15.1‰ and the lowest that of Ireland, at -7.5‰.

Globally, the highest relative increase in population is that of Luxemburg (+19.3‰), and the lowest that of Lithuania (-25.7‰).