Statistics Canada says the country’s population edged down 0.2 per cent in the third quarter as the drop in the number of non-permanent residents posted its largest decline on record.

The agency says preliminary estimates indicate the population fell by 76,068 people over the July 1 to Oct. 1 period to bring the number of people in Canada to 41,575,585.

The result compared with an increase of 231,803 people in the third quarter of 2024.

The overall drop came as the number of non-permanent residents in Canada fell by 176,479 in the third quarter, the largest decease since comparable records began in the third quarter of 1971. Net emigration amounted to a loss of 20,056 people.

However, the drop was partly offset by permanent immigration as Canada welcomed 102,867 immigrants in the quarter.

The natural increase, the measure of births minus deaths, totalled 17,600 for the quarter.