IL VITAL STATISTICS
(N.B. All statistics in this report are in respect of the calendar year 1953).
Population.
29. The estimated population of the Colony in June, 1953 was 2,250,000 but this figure is only an approximation for there has not been a population census since 1961 and there have been great fluctuations since then due to the war and political changes in China.
30. More than 90% of the population is Chinese, and most of those are Cantonese, although there are large numbers of persons from Shanghai and North China. The European and American element is about 14,500, and there are smaller groups of Indians and other Asian nationals.
$1. It is estimated that approximately one million persona live on Hong Kong Island about the same number in Kowloon and the remainder in the New Territories.
Births.
32. The number of births registered during the year was 75,544 as compared with 71,976 in the previous year. In view of the uncertainty of the population figures calculated birth rates can only be estimates of very doubtful accuracy. Never- theless, on the figures available the birth rate for 1953 was 89.6 per thousand, a slight increase in the rate of 32 per thousand calculated for 1962. Of the total births registered, 73,697, or 97.5, were attended by a midwife or doctor. Details of attended births are shown in Appendix 2.
Deaths,
33. There was a drop in the number of deaths registered, from 19,459 during 1952, to 18,300 and a corresponding reduc- tion in the death rate from 8.6 per thousand to 8.1 per thousand.
B
Infant Mortality.
34. Deaths of infants under one year of age oumbered 5,560. This was slightly higher than in the previous year but in view of the greater number of births registered during the year there was a further drop in the infant mortality rate to 73.6 per thousand live births as compared with 77.1 per thousand live births in the previous year. In 1952 deaths of infants under one year constituted 28.5% of the total deaths whereas in 1953 they constituled 30.4% of total deaths,
35. The following Table gives infant and neo-natal deaths and the neo-natal death rate per thousand live births for the year 1962 and 1963;-
TABLE 1
Neo-natal Bartality Rate
Age Period
1932
1953
0-1 day
202
2TB
1-T dayı oy sa kama kuna metr AKANEKOOKS,
14 weeks
weela-3 ppool.bus
735
795
AT3
$75
1,001
1,115
EKONOMI al de 18 19 20
B74
823
935
Eth
#46
795
3-6 montba....
$1.11 month
Toul under I portere,soas co0019 predkokdoek
Jafmat Mortality rate-commandoja kama
5,546
5,560
17.1
13.5
No. of deaths under 4 weeks
Neo-natal Mortality rate
1,890
1,918
26.3
25.0