OTTAWA, June 29 (UPI) -- Canada's population tops 34 million, with British Columbia showing the strongest growth rate among the provinces, Statistics Canada said.
The Canadian population overall jumped 0.26 percent --or 88,100 -- from January to April. reported Monday. The increase was smaller than the 91,400 increase in the same period last year.
The four western provinces and three territories all posted growth rates above the national average, StatsCan said.
British Columbia's 0.37 percent growth rate to 4.51 million people led all provinces for the third straight quarter, StatCan said.
Across Canada, the net international migration was responsible for 71 percent of the increase while 29 percent was attributable to natural increase, both of which rose at a slower pace than in the previous year, the statistics office said.
The drop in Canada's net international migration mainly was because of a substantial drop in the net number of non-permanent residents having a work or study permit or who are refugees and their families.
