The population of Ukraine was estimated at 47,354.0 thousand residents as of November 1, 2004. During January-October, the population decreased by 268.4 thousand persons, which is 14.3% less compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. In the overall population decrease, the share of natural decline accounted for 97.2% (260.8 thousand persons), and migration decline – 2.8% (7.6 thousand persons), reports "LIHABiznesInform". \n \nAs reported by the State Statistics Committee of Ukraine, the volume of natural population decline compared to the corresponding period of last year decreased by 30.7 thousand people (by 10.5%), due to both an increase in the number of births by 17.4 thousand (by 5.1%) and a reduction in the number of deaths by 13.3 thousand (by 2.1%). \n \nMigration population decline decreased from 21.6 thousand persons in January-October 2003 to 7.6 thousand in January-October of the current year. The number of those who arrived in Ukraine for permanent residence, compared to January-October 2003, decreased from 31.9 thousand to 31.5 thousand, and those who departed beyond the country's borders – from 53.5 thousand to 39.1 thousand. \n \nAmong those who arrived in Ukraine, 85.2% were immigrants from CIS countries and 14.8% – from other countries. Among those who departed from Ukraine, 62.1% left for CIS countries and 37.9% – to other countries.