ISTAT said that Italy’s resident population was down by almost 384,000 on December 31, 2020 with respect to the start of last year.
The national statistics agency said the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic had amplified the declining trend the Italian population has experienced since 2015.
The drop means that it is as if a city the size of Florence had disappeared last year.
ISTAT said Italy registered a record low in births since unification last year and the highest number of deaths since World War II.
It said 404,104 births were registered last year, down by almost 16,000 with respect to 2019.
It said 746,146 deaths were registered in 2020, almost 112,000 more than 2019, a rise of 17.6%.
Main Photo: Daily life in Navona square during the new emergency lockdown in the Coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic, Rome, Italy. EPA-EFE/ETTORE FERRARI
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