NM's brain drain continues; more people leaving than arriving; continued stagnation

- Net outmigration of 3,509 people in past year

- State's population grows by 2,033 people, or 0.1 percent

- Population now at 2,095,428

- Since 2010, NM's net migration loss has been 34,628 people

New Mexico's brain drain continued last year as more people left the state than came here, continuing a trend that since 2010 has seen a net outmigration of 34,628 people.

And in the year that ended July 30, 2018, the state's population grew by a measly 2,033 people, or 0.1 percent, according to new population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau.

New Mexico was the only state in the region to have more people leave that arrive in the past year, and it's negligible population growth was the lowest in the region.

Here are the stats. In the 12 months that ended July 1, New Mexico suffered a net outflow of 3,509 people, meaning that many more people left the state than came here. That means that people are looking for opportunity in other states. For instance, in the past year, domestic migration for New Mexico, meaning people arriving from or leaving to other states totaled a negative 5,851 people. International migration, basically foreign students at the state's colleges and universities was a plus 2,342 people.

As of July 1, New Mexico's population was 2,095,428, according to the Census Bureau.

So with so many people leaving, why did New Mexico's population grow at all? Because births in the state outnumbered deaths by 5,605.

New Mexico's population growth, which is one indicator of how its economy is doing, has been pretty much stagnant since 2010. In those eight years, the state's population has grown by 36,248, or 1.8 percent. In that same time, Arizona has grown by 797,358 people, or 12.2 percent, and Colorado's population has increased by 666,248 people, or 13.2 percent.

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