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Quebec’s fertility rate continue to decline last year, according to new data from l’Institut de la statistique du Québec.

In 2016, there were 1.59 children per woman, falling slightly from the peak of 1.73 children in 2008 and 2009.

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Still, the institute says that Quebec’s fertility is not as low as in the early 2000s and in the mid-1980s. During those periods, the index dropped to less than 1.5 children per woman.

Statistics Canada determines the synthetic index by the number of children a woman would hypothetically have, given the age-specific fertility rate observed in a given year.

The Quebec analysis suggests the recent decline is related to lower fertility rates among women under 30 years old. After 30, the rate increases for several years, then holds steady.

In 2016, first children were born to women who were on average 29 years old, four years later than women in 1975.

There were 86,400 babies born in Quebec in 2016, compared with 86,800 in 2015 and 87,700 in 2014. The number of births declined after a period of relative stability between 2009 and 2013, ranging from 88,000 to 89,000. It had grown rapidly from 2005 to 2008.

In northern Quebec, the rate was a healthy 2.51 children per woman; in Montreal, the rate was 1.43.