Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA vs. New Jersey Comparative Trends Analysis: Population Growth and Change, 1969-2022 Introduction Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA: 2022 Population = 6,241,164 2022 Percent of State = 2.17% New Jersey: 2022 Population = 9,261,699 2022 Percent of U.S. = 2.78% Attracting and retaining people to live, work, raise a family, and retire underlies the economic vitality of any region. Population growth is both a cause--and a consequence--of economic growth. Patterns of population growth and change reflect differences among regions to attract and retain people both as producers and consumers in their economy. The following graphs offer a broad overview of trends in the pattern of population growth and change of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA with comparisons to New Jersey and the nation at large. This analysis features alternative approaches toward discussing, diagnosing and comparing the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA vs. New Jersey's population growth over 1969-2022. The data used are those compiled by the Regional Income and Product Divisions of the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce. Population, 1969-2022 Figure 1. Figure 1 tracks the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's population rose from 5,261,815 in 1969 to 6,241,164 in 2022, for a net gain of 979,349, or 18.61%. NOTE: The county and state population totals reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are from the Bureau of Census midyear (July 1) estimates. These estimates may differ from those prepared independently in some states by various agencies and/or universities. Population, 1969-2022 Figure 2. Figure 2 traces New Jersey's annual population for the period 1969-2022 to illustrate population patterns over time. During this 54-year period, New Jersey's population rose from 7,095,000 in 1969 to 9,261,699 in 2022, for a net gain of 2,166,699, or 30.54%. NOTE: The county and state population totals reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are from the Bureau of Census midyear (July 1) estimates. These estimates may differ from those prepared independently in some states by various agencies and/or universities. Population Indices (1969=100): 1969-2022 Figure 3. Figure 3 shows the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's population growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with New Jersey, the United States. The growth indices shown here express each region's population in 1969 as a base figure of 100, and the populations in later years as a percentage of the 1969 base figure. This method allows for more direct comparison of differences in population growth between regions that may differ vastly in size. The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's overall population growth was 18.61% over 1969-2022 trailed New Jersey's increase of 30.54%, and fell below the United States' increase of 65.57%. Population as a Percent of the New Jersey Total: 1969-2022 Figure 4. Another interesting and insightful way of highlighting the population growth of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA is to trace its individual percentage contributions to New Jersey's statewide population over time, as shown in Figure 4. A rising share means a region's population grew faster, or declined less, than New Jersey's population, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly. In 1969, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's population totaled 74.16% of New Jersey's population, while in 2022 it comprised 67.39% thereby yielding a -6.78% share-shift.
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA Population: Annual Percent Change, 1970-2022 Figure 5. Figure 5 displays the short-run pattern of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's population growth by tracking the year-to-year percent change over 1970-2022. The average annual percent change for the entire 53-year period is also illustrated on this chart to provide a benchmark for gauging periods of relative high--and relative low--growth against the backdrop of the long-term average. On average, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's population grew at an annual rate of 0.32% over 1970-2022. The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA recorded its highest growth in 1970 (1.32%) and posted its lowest growth in 1973 (-0.67%). In 2022, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's population declined by -0.19% Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA Population: Annual Percent Change and Decade Averages Over 1970-2022 Figure 6. Over the past five decades some msas have experienced extreme swings in growth, and often such swings have tended to coincide with the decades themselves. Figure 6 again illustrates the annual percent change in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's population since 1970, but this time they are displayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022. During the 1970s, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's annual population growth rate averaged -0.02%. It averaged 0.35% during the 1980s, 0.42% throughout the 1990s, 0.48% throughout the 2000s, 0.47% in the 2010s, 0.07% thus far this decade (2020-2022). Population Growth: Average Annual Percent Change by Decade Figure 7. Figure 7 compares the decade average growth rates for the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for New Jersey and the nation. As the chart reveals, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA's average annual population growth lagged New Jersey's average during the 1970s (-0.02% vs. 0.39%), lagged New Jersey's average in the 1980s (0.35% vs. 0.47%), fell below New Jersey's average during the 1990s (0.42% vs. 0.79%), outperformed New Jersey's average during the 2000s (0.48% vs. 0.46%), fell below New Jersey's average in the 2010s (0.47% vs. 0.56%), and outpaced New Jersey's average over the 3 year period of the current decade, 2020-2022 (0.07% vs. 0.01%). Finally, relative to nationwide population growth trends, the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA lagged the nation over the 1970s (-0.02% vs. 1.10%), fell below the nation over the 1980s (0.35% vs. 0.95%), posted below the nation in the 1990s (0.42% vs. 1.23%), posted below the nation over the 2000s (0.48% vs. 0.95%), fell under the nation over the 2010s (0.47% vs. 0.74%), and lagged the nation over 2020-2022 (0.07% vs. 0.31%).
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