Greater Moncton saw the fastest growth rate of all urban regions in Canada last year, according to Statistics Canada.

New estimates show the population of the Moncton area grew by 5.3 per cent between July 2021 and July 2022.

The region’s population stood at 171,608 as of July 1, an increase of 8,784 people, according to the figures released Wednesday.

StatCan said the region grew nearly three times faster than the national average of 1.8 per cent during the same period.

“The largest urban centers continue to see their growth resulting mostly from international migration as movement towards smaller urban centers or peripheral regions remains strong,” Statistics Canada said in its report.

Meanwhile, the Saint John region saw a growth rate of 2.1 per cent last year. The population grew by an estimated 2,861 people to 135,622.

That was, by far, the largest one-year population growth in the Saint John region over the past two decades. The last highest was 1,137 people between 2008 and 2009.

The Saint John metropolitan area even recorded several years of population decreases between 2002 and 2006 and between 2011 and 2015.

Greater Fredericton had a slightly higher growth rate last year at 3.3 per cent, according to StatCan. The capital region had an estimated population of 116,159 as of July 1, an increase of 3,731 people.

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