Alaska's population declines for first time in 29 years

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – Alaska's population declined for the first time in 29 years as the state's oil-driven recession continued through 2017.

State figures released on Wednesday listed the state's population at 737,080, the Juneau Empire reported . That's down 2,629 from 2016 and is the first decrease since 1988.

The number of people moving out was only partially balanced by the number of new births.

The state also had a record high in number of deaths this past year, at 4,530.

``The remarkable point is the net migration loss, and that caused a population loss between 2016 and 2017,'' state de...