Asians earn the fattest incomes and are the most qualified and employed among the foreign-born population in the United States, based on the latest US Census Bureau report released Thursday.
It said Asians make up a quarter of the 33.5 million foreign-born, who in turn make up 11.7 percent of the total 288.4 million population in the world's most developed economy.
Foreign born are classified as those not US citizens at birth.
"The Asian population is doing well in terms of socio-economic characteristics in the United States," Kevin Deardorff, the chief immigration statistics staff at the population division of the Census Bureau, said at a press conference.
In presenting "The foreign-born population in the United States: 2003" report, he said Asians had "a tendency to have higher incomes levels and higher educational attainment.
"This is a pattern that we have seen over the past few years and a pattern that seems to be pretty well established now," Deardorff said.
The report, based on data from the so-called "2003 Current Population Survey," showed that 87.4 percent of Asians in the United States had a "high school or more" qualification compared with 84.9 percent among those from Europe and 49.1 percent from Latin America.
The proportion that had attained a bachelor's degree or more ranged from 50.0 percent among Asians to 35.4 percent for those from Europe and 11.6 percent from Latin America.
The report also showed that the proportion of foreign-born workers in management and professional occupations was highest among those from Asia - 47 percent - compared with 41.3 percent from Europe and 12.7 percent from Latin America.
Based on total household income, the report said 53.8 percent of Asians earned an annual income of 50,000 dollars or more compared with 42.7 percent among those from Europe, 29 percent from Latin America and 44 percent among natives.
Natives were classified as those born on US soil - or born abroad of at least one parent who was a US citizen.
In individual earnings among foreign-born full-time workers, the proportion earning 50,000 dollars or more ranged from an estimated 37.3 percent for those from Asia to 35.1 percent from Europe to 10.8 percent from Latin America.
The poverty rate among Asians was 11.1 percent compared with 8.7 percent among those from Europe and 21.6 percent from Latin America.
On geographical distribution of the foreign population, the report said those from Latin America and Asia were more likely to live in the West than in any other region of the United States.
The West region comprises Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
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