The population of residents in Shanghai reached 24.3 million at the end of last year, according to Shanghai Daily, increasing by 105,300 from the previous year.
Only 14.3 million, however, are registered in the city, meaning the other 10 million accounted for are migrant workers who have resided in the city for over six months. This shows that more and more migrants are moving to Shanghai in search of work and urban life.
Though the number of people in Shanghai is expanding rapidly, these statistics actually show the rate of expansion has slowed when compared to previous years. From 2013 to 2014, Shanghai grew by 297,700—almost double last year’s figures.
The implications of this are small, and as Shanghai remains one of the most populated cities in the world, it is constantly expanding and building new infrastructure to accommodate this change. If anything, in the future, it looks like we will be cozying up to each other as the population grows—at least it might help the winter chill.
By Freya Twigden
[Photo Credit: User:我爱波音哈 / 小小西西瓜 AC02