Births and Deaths: Year ended December 2010

In the December 2010 year:

• 63,900 live births and 28,440 deaths were registered in New Zealand, resulting in a natural increase (live births minus deaths) of 35,460.
  
  
• The total fertility rate was 2.1 births per woman for the total population, compared with 2.8 for Māori women.
  
  
• Women aged 30–34 years had the highest age-specific fertility rate (126 births per 1,000 women). 
   
• The median age of all women giving birth was 30 years, compared with 26 years for Māori women. 
   
• The age-standardised death rate was 3.8 deaths per 1,000 mean estimated population, down from 4.8 in 2000.
   
• The age-standardised death rate for the Māori population was 6.3 deaths per 1,000 mean estimated population, down from 8.8 in 2000.
   
• The infant mortality rate for the total population was 5.1 deaths per 1,000 live births, compared with 6.6 deaths per 1,000 live births for Māori infants.