BERLIN, June 20 (Xinhua) -- Germany's population grew by just 0.1 percent in 2024, down from a 0.4 percent increase in 2023, according to figures released Friday by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).
The office stated that, although deaths continued to outnumber births, the overall population in Germany still grew, primarily due to net immigration.
The number of foreign nationals living in Germany increased by 2.3 percent to 12.4 million, while the German citizen population decreased by 0.2 percent to 71.2 million.
According to Destatis, foreigners now make up 19.7 percent of the population aged 20 to 59, but only 6.3 percent of those aged 60 and above, showing demographic differences across age groups.
However, a study released earlier this month by the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) suggests that a growing number of immigrants may not be planning to stay in Germany long term.
Based on the results of a survey of some 50,000 foreign-born individuals aged 18 to 65 who immigrated to Germany, it is estimated that 26 percent of immigrants in Germany, approximately 2.6 million people, are considering leaving the country. Among them, about 300,000 people have already had concrete plans to emigrate.
"It is especially those who are better educated, more economically successful, and more linguistically integrated -- many of whom came to Germany for work or study -- who are more likely than average to consider leaving or report firm plans to emigrate," said IAB researcher Lukas Olbrich. "In other words, it's exactly the skilled workers Germany urgently needs who are thinking about leaving." ■