If the birth rate is 12 per 1000 and the death rate is 8 per 1000, the natural increase rate is which value?

If the birth rate is 12 per 1000 and the death rate is 8 per 1000, the natural increase rate is which value?

• A. 12 per 1000
• B. 8 per 1000
• C. -4 per 1000
• D. 4 per 1000

Answer: (D)

Natural increase rate shows how the population grows from births minus deaths, ignoring migration. It’s found by subtracting the death rate from the birth rate. Here the birth rate is 12 per 1000 and the death rate is 8 per 1000, so 12 − 8 = 4 per 1000 per year. Since births exceed deaths, the natural increase is positive. It isn’t the birth rate or the death rate alone, and it isn’t negative because the birth rate is higher than the death rate.

Natural increase rate shows how the population grows from births minus deaths, ignoring migration. It’s found by subtracting the death rate from the birth rate. Here the birth rate is 12 per 1000 and the death rate is 8 per 1000, so 12 − 8 = 4 per 1000 per year. Since births exceed deaths, the natural increase is positive. It isn’t the birth rate or the death rate alone, and it isn’t negative because the birth rate is higher than the death rate.