Population growth in US metro areas slows, data shows

By Jasper Ward

WASHINGTON, ‌March 26 (Reuters) - Major ​U.S. ​cities have experienced a population decline, the U.S. Census Bureau said on Thursday, which the ‌White House touted as the result of President ⁠Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.

Although the U.S. population grew by 1.8 ‌million people last year, the ‌Census review found an average 0.6% increase in population growth in metropolitan areas in the 12 months ​ending July 1, 2025 - down from an average 1.1% in increase in the year to July 1, ⁠2024.

The three metropolitan areas with the steepest declines are all located along ​the U.S. southern border with Mexico. Those areas are Laredo, Texas; Yuma, Arizona; and El ​Centro, California.

Laredo, which had growth of ‌3.2% in 2023/2024, only saw a 0.2% increase in the 2024/2025 period. Meanwhile, Yuma ⁠went from 3.3% to 1.4%, and El Centro from 1.2% to -0.7%.

The White House said the statistic reflected the success of ⁠Trump's border security policies. Trump began his second term in office ​on January 20, 2025.

Nine in 10 U.S. counties experienced lower net international migration during the 2024-2025 period when compared with the ‌year before, the bureau said. It added that the one in 10 counties that ‌did not see a drop in international migration did ⁠not see an increase ‌either.

Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, ​North Carolina and Virginia had the fastest-growing counties, the bureau said.

(Reporting by Jasper Ward in ‌Washington)

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