Minorities set to be US majority

Population projections are subject to a variety of factors
White people of European descent will no longer make up a majority of the US population by the year 2042 - eight years sooner than previous estimates.

The big change is among Hispanics and Asians, whose numbers are expected to double by the middle of the century to form 30% and 9% of the population.

It is projected that black people will account for 15%, a small increase.

The US Census Bureau's latest projections are based on birth, death and current immigration rates.

According to the bureau's statistics, ethnic and racial minorities will become the majority by 2042 and account for 54% of the population by 2050.

The process of change has been speeded up through immigration and higher birth rates among US minorities, especially Hispanics.

Non-Hispanic whites, who now make up 66% of the population, will account for 46% by the middle of the century.

'Ageing baby boomers'

It has long been said that the US is a nation of immigrants but in the past the influx has mainly come from white Europeans, the BBC's Jonathan Beale reports from Washington.

CENSUS PREDICTION
2050: Minorities will make up 54%
Hispanics: Rise to 30% from 15%
Blacks: Small increase to 15%
Asians: Rise to 9% from 4%

It is likely that the demographic changes will be experienced right across the country - and no longer confined to urban areas as in the past.

Overall, the US population is expected to rise from 305 million people to 439 million by 2050.

The white population will also be ageing. The number of people over 85 years old will triple in the next 40 years.

"The white population is older and very much centred around the ageing baby boomers who are well past their high fertility years," William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution think tank, told the Associated Press.

"The future of America is epitomised by the young people today. They are basically the melting pot we are going to see in the future."

The Census Bureau points out that its projections are subject to big revisions, depending on immigration policy, cultural changes and natural or man-made disasters.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7559996.stm