WSJ Reports Illegal Immigration From Mexico Hits Lowest Level in Decade

[RepublicanBoards]

Wall Street Journal released today a new report on immigration numbers:

The flow of immigrants from Mexico to the U.S. declined to the lowest level in a decade during the past year, a sign that the recession is deterring economic migrants from heading north in search of jobs.

However, there is no evidence of an increase between March 2008 and March 2009 in the number of Mexicans returning home from the U.S., according to an analysis by the Pew Hispanic Center, an independent research group in Washington.

The slowing of Mexican immigration to the U.S. is part of a broader trend, as migration flows around the world have also ebbed due to the global economic slowdown.

While the downturn has sharply curtailed employment of Latino immigrants, the analysis "finds no support for the hypothesis" that it is compelling Mexicans to return home, the report says.

The number of illegal immigrants residing in the U.S. was at one point estimated to be at least 12 million, and it appears to have shrunk recently. Pew Hispanic estimates that the Mexican immigrant population in the U.S. slipped to 11.5 million from 11.6 million between March 2008 and March 2009.

The decline in the number of illegal immigrants comes as the Obama administration prepares to push for a legislative overhaul of U.S. immigration policy. Opponents of retooling immigration laws believe undocumented residents are a drain on the nation's financial resources and compete with Americans for jobs.

The influx of Mexicans plunged to 175,000 in the 12-month period ending in March from a peak of 653,000 in 2005, based on analysis of Census data by Pew Hispanic. The number of entries has been decreasing steadily since mid-decade, according to the report.

Full Story Here:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124830603836573915.html