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OVERVIEW

This is the final issue of this electronic product. It is intended that future state and territory-specific data will be made available in spreadsheet format with releases of the relevant annual national publications.

This electronic product provides a demographic overview of Australia for 2004. It contains summary tables and commentary on trends in the components of population change including births, deaths and migration. This product also includes marriages, divorces and the estimated resident population. Various demographic rates and comparisons between the states and territories of Australia are presented. Population and migration data are for the year ended 30 June 2004, while births, deaths, marriages and divorces data are for the year ended 31 December 2004. More recent data are released quarterly in Australian Demographic Statistics (cat. no. 3101.0).

Demography publications for each state and territory can be accessed from the Related Information tab at the top of this page. Additional state demographic data are also available from publications and data cubes linked at the top of this page. The Demography Theme Page provides links to other Australian as well as international demographic statistics. The National Regional Profiles provide economic and social statistics of Statistical Local Areas and Local Government Areas of Australia.

INQUIRIES

For further information about these and related statistics, contact the National Information and Referral Service on 1300 135 070 or Neil Scott on Canberra (02) 6252 5997.

SUMMARY COMMENTARY

POPULATION

In the year to 30 June 2004 Australia's estimated resident population increased by 218,900 persons to reach 20,091,500 (9,990,500 males and 10,101,000 females). Over three-quarters of the population resided in either New South Wales (NSW), Victoria or Queensland in 2004 (comprising 33.5%, 24.7% and 19.4% of the Australian population respectively). The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) accounted for 1.6% of Australia's population, and the Northern Territory accounted for 1.0%.

Australia's population increased by 1.1% in 2003-04. The populations of all states and territories increased during this period with Queensland experiencing the highest rate of growth at 2.3%. Other states to experience growth of at least 1.0% were Western Australia (1.4%), Victoria and Tasmania (both 1.0%). The lowest rates of growth were recorded in the ACT (0.2%), South Australia (0.4%), NSW and the Northern Territory (both 0.6%).

Queensland also recorded the largest increase in population of the states and territories, up 87,000 persons, accounting for 39.8% of Australia's total population growth in 2004. Victoria recorded the second largest increase, up 51,500 persons, while NSW increased by 38,700 persons.

ANNUAL POPULATION GROWTH, States and territories - year ended 30 June 2004

All states and territories experienced both positive natural increase and net overseas migration in 2004. Net interstate migration remained highest for Queensland, continuing the long term trend. Tasmania and Western Australia also experienced positive net interstate migration. NSW and South Australia both continued their long term trends of losing population through negative net interstate migration.

POPULATION AND HOUSEHOLDS, States and territories - 2004 at 30 June
			NSW	Vic.	Qld	SA	WA	Tas.	NT	ACT	Aust.(a)
Estimated resident population		('000)	6 720.8	4 963.0	3 888.1	1 532.7	1 978.1	482.2	199.8	324.1	20 091.5
Components of population change(b)
	Natural increase(c)	no.	39 363	28 816	24 953	5 318	13 225	1 756	2 750	2 692	118 892
	Net overseas migration	no.	29 820	25 020	25 399	4 305	13 634	700	648	456	99 966
	Net interstate migration	no.	-30 445	-2 291	36 686	-3 197	1 272	2 475	-2 108	-2 392	. .
Total increase(b)(d)		no.	38 738	51 545	87 038	6 426	28 131	4 931	1 290	756	218 858
Annual growth rate(b)		%	0.58	1.05	2.29	0.42	1.44	1.03	0.65	0.23	1.10
Projected households(e)		('000)	2 565.9	1 915.8	1 504.8	634.9	772.1	198.3	64.8	126.3	7 782.8
. . not applicable
(a) Includes Other Territories.
(b) From 30 June of previous year.
(c) Excess of births over deaths. Births and deaths figures used to compile natural increase for population estimates are based on year of occurrence and may differ from births and deaths data based on year of registration given in the Births and Deaths sections of this paper.
(d) Includes intercensal discrepancy not accounted for by natural increase and net migration.
(e) Series II from Household and Family Projections, Australia, 2001-2026 (Cat. no. 3236.0).

BIRTHS AND CONFINEMENTS

During 2004 there were 254,200 births registered in Australia, from 250,000 mothers (confinements). The three most populous states accounted for over three-quarters of registered births in 2004, with 85,900 births to mothers usually resident in NSW (33.8% of all births), 62,400 in Victoria (24.5%) and 49,900 in Queensland (19.6%). There were 3,600 births to mothers usually resident in the Northern Territory (1.4%, the smallest proportion of all births in Australia). Sex ratios at birth for all states and territories were greater than 100, ranging from 102.9 male births per 100 female births in the Northern Territory to a ratio of 108.4 in Tasmania.

The total fertility rate (TFR), that is the average number of babies that a woman could expect to bear during her reproductive lifetime, was 1.77 children per woman for Australia in 2004. The Northern Territory recorded the highest TFR (2.24 children per woman) and was the only state or territory with a TFR greater than the replacement rate of 2.1. Tasmania had the second highest TFR with a rate of 1.93, while the Australian Capital Territory experienced the lowest TFR, with 1.64.

In 2004 there were 172,500 nuptial births in Australia, representing 67.8% of all births decreasing from 74.4% in 1994. Victoria had the highest proportion of nuptial births of all states and territories (73.2%), followed by the ACT (72.2%) and NSW (71.5%). The proportion of exnuptial births was greatest in the Northern Territory (64.3%) followed by Tasmania (46.3%).

EXNUPTIAL BIRTHS(a), States and territories - 1994 and 2004

BIRTHS AND CONFINEMENTS, States and territories - 2004(a)
			NSW	Vic.	Qld	SA	WA	Tas.	NT	ACT	Aust.(b)
Live births
	Number	no.	85 894	62 417	49 940	17 140	25 295	5 809	3 551	4 174	254 246
	Crude birth rate(c)	rate	12.8	12.6	12.8	11.2	12.8	12.0	17.8	12.9	12.7
	Total fertility rate(d)	rate	1.794	1.701	1.811	1.707	1.807	1.927	2.239	1.637	1.774
	Net reproduction rate(e)	rate	0.859	0.823	0.873	0.823	0.871	0.913	1.072	0.779	0.853
All confinements
	Number	no.	84 568	61 286	49 102	16 869	24 896	5 702	3 510	4 086	250 045
	Median age of mother	years	30.6	31.3	29.8	30.8	30.2	29.2	28.3	31.6	30.6
Nuptial confinements
	Number	no.	60 385	44 784	30 448	10 848	15 592	3 043	1 247	2 943	169 312
	Median age of mother	years	31.4	32.0	31.2	32.0	31.6	30.9	31.8	32.3	31.6
	Median age of father	years	33.6	33.9	33.1	33.9	33.7	33.1	33.8	34.0	33.6
First nuptial confinements
	Number	no.	25 680	20 115	12 630	4 840	6 460	1 264	532	1 279	72 808
	Median age of mother	years	30.2	30.8	30.0	30.9	30.4	29.7	30.8	31.1	30.4
(a) Year of registration.
(b) Include Other Territories.
(c) Births per 1,000 population.
(d) Births per woman.
(e) Daughters surviving to reproductive age per woman.

DEATHS

There were 132,500 deaths registered in Australia in 2004, with 46,400 (35.0% of total deaths) registered in New South Wales, 32,500 (24.5%) in Victoria, and 24,500 (18.5%) in Queensland. The sex ratio at death was 106.7 male deaths per 100 female deaths, and ranged from 102.2 male deaths per 100 female deaths in Victoria to a rate of 169.8 in the Northern Territory.

The standardised death rate (SDR), which eliminates the effect of the changing age structure of the population was 6.3 deaths per 1,000 standard population. The Australian Capital Territory experienced the lowest SDR of 5.6 deaths per 1,000, whereas the Northern Territory experienced the highest rate of 8.2 deaths per 1,000 population. Males generally have a higher SDR than females; this was evident in all states and territories in 2004.

STANDARDISED DEATH RATES (a), States and territories - 2004

The median age of death was also lowest in the Northern Territory for both males (55.0 years) and females (61.2 years), well below the national values of 76.6 years for males and 82.6 years for females. The median age at death was highest in South Australia, with 77.5 years for males and 83.2 years for females.

The infant mortality rate (IMR) for Australia was 4.7 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2004. The Northern Territory recorded an IMR of 10.7, the highest of all states and territories. The second highest IMR was 6.9 in the ACT.

DEATHS, States and territories - 2004(a)
			NSW	Vic.	Qld	SA	WA	Tas.	NT	ACT	Aust.(b)
Number		no.	46 440	32 522	24 514	11 629	11 184	3 892	893	1 423	132 508
Crude death rate(c)		rate	6.9	6.6	6.3	7.6	5.7	8.1	4.5	4.4	6.6
Standardised death rate(d)		rate	6.3	6.0	6.5	6.2	6.0	7.1	8.2	5.6	6.3
Median age at death
	Males	years	76.9	77.3	75.9	77.5	75.6	76.5	55.0	75.2	76.6
	Females	years	82.7	83.0	82.2	83.2	81.9	82.5	61.2	80.8	82.6
Infant deaths
	Number	no.	399	282	262	54	99	21	38	29	1 184
	Infant mortality rate(e)	rate	4.6	4.5	5.2	3.2	3.9	3.6	10.7	6.9	4.7
Life expectancy at birth(f)
	Males	years	78.0	78.5	77.8	78.0	78.6	76.7	72.3	79.7	78.1
	Females	years	83.3	83.3	82.9	83.1	83.3	81.8	78.0	83.9	83.0
(a) Year of registration.
(b) Includes Other Territories.
(c) Deaths per 1,000 population.
(d) Deaths per 1,000 population. Standardised death rates use total persons in the 2001 Australian population as the standard population.
(e) Deaths per 1,000 live births.
(f) From 1995 onwards expectation of life has been calculated using three years of data.

MIGRATION

In 2003-04 Australia gained 100,000 persons as a result of net overseas migration (NOM). Each state and territory increased its population through NOM. The largest gain was recorded by NSW, with an increase of 29,800 persons (29.8% of Australia's NOM), while the smallest increase was recorded by the ACT, gaining 460 persons.

An estimated 386,400 persons moved interstate in 2003-04. Queensland, Tasmania and Western Australia were the only states to experience net interstate migration gains. The greatest increase was in Queensland, which gained 36,700 persons, followed by Tasmania which gained 2,500 persons. All other states and territories experienced net interstate losses of varying magnitude, with the largest loss recorded by NSW (30,400 persons). The Northern Territory had the smallest population loss due to net interstate migration, losing 2,100 persons. Proportionately, however, the Northern Territory lost 1.1% of its population through interstate migration while Queensland gained the largest proportion (0.9%).

NET MIGRATION(a), - States and territories - 2003-04

MIGRATION, States and territories - 2004 at 30 June
			NSW	Vic.	Qld	SA	WA	Tas.	NT	ACT	Aust.(a)
Overseas migration
	Permanent and long-term movement(b)
	Arrivals	no.	155 162	101 018	67 272	18 025	45 970	3 353	2 755	7 755	401 316
	Departures	no.	98 048	54 285	39 754	10 368	23 433	2 326	1 844	6 614	236 696
	Net overseas migration(c)	no.	29 820	25 020	25 399	4 305	13 634	700	648	456	99 966
Interstate migration
	Arrivals	no.	90 270	71 655	115 635	27 032	32 297	16 204	15 383	17 889	386 365
	Departures	no.	120 715	73 946	78 949	30 229	31 025	13 729	17 491	20 281	386 365
	Net interstate migration	no.	-30 445	-2 291	36 686	-3 197	1 272	2 475	-2 108	-2 392	. .
. . not applicable
(a) Includes Other Territories.
(b) Based on stated intention on arrival or departure.
(c) Figures have been adjusted for changes in traveller intention and multiple mover error.

MARRIAGES

There were 111,000 marriages registered in Australia in 2004; of these 67.2% were marriages in which neither party had been previously married and 14.8% involved both parties remarrying. The remaining 18.0% involved one of the partners having been previously married.

The crude marriage rate for Australia was 5.5 marriages per 1,000 population. The lowest crude marriage rate was in the Northern Territory (3.9 marriages) and the highest was in Queensland (6.3 marriages).

For Australia the median age of brides marrying in 2004 was 29.2 years while the median age of bridegrooms was 31.5 years. The median age of brides was highest in Tasmania (30.6 years) while the median age of bridegrooms was highest in the Northern Territory (33.2 years). The lowest median age of brides was recorded in NSW (28.8 years) while the lowest median age of bridegrooms was recorded in the ACT (30.9 years).

MARRIAGES, States and territories - 2004(a)
			NSW	Vic.	Qld	SA	WA	Tas.	NT	ACT	Aust.(b)
Number registered		no.	37 431	25 587	24 312	7 883	10 601	2 648	777	1 719	110 958
Crude marriage rate(c)		rate	5.6	5.2	6.3	5.1	5.4	5.5	3.9	5.3	5.5
Median age at marriage
	Bridegroom	years	31.2	31.4	31.6	31.8	31.9	33.0	33.2	30.9	31.5
	Bride	years	28.8	29.4	29.4	29.3	29.6	30.6	30.5	28.9	29.2
(a) For 2004, marriage registrations were sampled for New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia, and therefore subject to sampling error. The marriage registrations for the remaining states and territories were fully enumerated.
(b) Includes Other Territories.
(c) Marriages per 1,000 population.

DIVORCES

There were 52,700 divorces granted in Australia in 2004, 0.7% less than the number granted in 2003 (53,100). Nationally the number of divorces has increased over the last decade by 9.2% from a total of 48,300 divorces registered in 1994. During 2004 all states and territories except Queensland and Tasmania recorded a decrease in the number of divorces. Queensland recorded its highest number of divorces on record with 13,300, an increase of 36.0% since 1994. Across Australia in 2004, 28.0% of all applications for a divorce were joint applications whereas 41.0% were made by wives and 31.0% by husbands.

The crude divorce rate (the number of divorces per 1,000 population) in 2004 was 2.6. New South Wales, Western Australia and the Northern Territory each recorded the lowest crude divorce rate (2.2) and Queensland the highest (3.4). This comparison excludes the rate for the ACT which is inflated by divorces granted in the territory involving persons usually resident in New South Wales.

The national median age at divorce continued its long term trend, increasing again in 2004 to reach 43.0 years for males and 40.3 years for females. This was an increase of 3.4 years for males and 3.5 years for females since 1994. The rise in the median age at divorce is associated with increasing age at first marriage and an increase in the interval between marriage and divorce.

DIVORCES, States and territories - 2004
			NSW	Vic.	Qld	SA	WA	Tas.	NT	ACT	Aust.(a)
Number granted		no.	15 007	12 544	13 279	4 147	4 337	1 404	434	1 595	52 747
Crude divorce rate(b)		rate	2.2	2.5	3.4	2.7	2.2	2.9	2.2	np	2.6
Median duration of marriage
	To separation	years	7.6	8.8	9.1	10.0	9.1	10.6	8.0	9.7	8.7
	To divorce	years	11.2	12.4	12.8	13.6	12.8	14.1	11.8	13.1	12.3
np not available for publication but included in totals where applicable, unless otherwise indicated
(a) Includes Other Territories.
(b) Divorces per 1,000 population.

Over the years the median duration of marriage (the interval between the date of marriage and the date of divorce) has continued to increase, and in 2004 was the highest recorded at 12.3 years. Variation between the states and territories ranged from 11.2 years in NSW to 14.1 years in Tasmania. The median duration of marriage to the time the parties separated has also increased over time from 7.6 years in 1994 to 8.7 years in 2004.

MEDIAN DURATION TO DIVORCE, States and territories - 1994 and 2004