Study: Asians immigrating at a faster rate than other groups

PHOENIX – New numbers from the Pew Research Center show Asian-Americans are growing at a faster rate than any other racial group.

At the same time, the Latino immigration rate has dropped sharply, particularly among immigrants coming from Mexico.

“The flow from Asia is still very large,” said Jim Chang, senior demographer for the Arizona Office of Employment and Population Statistics. “But it didn’t shoot up overnight. The decline in immigration from Latin American countries contributed to that shift.”

According to Chang, the numbers of Latinos in Arizona, and nationwide still dwarfs the Asian population. However, ASU Professor Wei Li, who research Asian-Pacific American issues, said the rate of increase for Asian migrants will stay steady for a long time, especially as the economy recovers, and more jobs requiring a lot of education pop up.

“I think that’s the driving force, especially in the high-tech field,” said Li. “We have Intel, Motorola, and all of these companies setting up shop in Arizona.”