There was a net reduction last year in the number of Taipei residents and this year is expected to set a 23-year high for population decline in the city, Ministry of the Interior statistics released yesterday showed.
From January to last month, 18,861 more people moved out of Taipei than moved into the capital, an increase of 7,000 from the same period last year, the data showed.
That is a 7.2 percent decrease in the city’s population since the start of the year, the biggest drop in both percentage and total number among all municipalities and counties nationwide, the data showed.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
The data are consistent with a trend over the past five years, with Taipei’s population decreasing by 110,038 people since 2014.
Last year Taipei had a net loss of 26,973 people. It was the only one of Taiwan’s six special municipalities to report a net drop last year.
Factors that influence people’s decision to relocate include job opportunities, public infrastructure, housing markets and social benefits, said an official who asked to remain anonymous.
One factor causing people to leave Taipei appears to be the rising cost of housing and other living expenses in the city, the official said, adding that people are increasingly commuting to jobs in Taipei from homes in New Taipei City or Taoyuan.
From January to last month, 7,574 people registered new addresses in New Taipei City and 4,888 people registered new addresses in Taoyuan, household registration office statistics in the cities showed.
Hsinchu County recorded a net increase of 2,579 new residents over the period, a 4.6 percent rise in its population from January, its office said.
Since 2014, 152,339 people have registered new addresses in Taoyuan — the highest number nationwide over the period, while 68,596 people registered new addresses in Taichung and 27,379 registered in Hsinchu, the offices’ statistics showed.
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