A high proportion of adult Chinese living in New South Wales were born elsewhere, most commonly in China. Mortality among these males from 1969-78 was due mainly to ischaemic heart disease (IHD) cancer and cerbrovascular disease. Females showed a similar general pattern. Chinese males had double the risk of dying from cerebrovascular death, but death rates from IHD were similar to those of the Australian population, although the risk of IHD was significantly lower in Chinese females. Male Chinese had significantly higher rates for cancers of the nasopharynx, lung, intestines and rectum, and stomach and liver, whereas females had a significantly higher risk for cancers of the lung and stomach. Mortality patterns were similar to those for United States Chinese. Apart from cancer, relatively little is known about the causes of death in China. Crude death rates only are available for very broad categories of causes of death. Most of our information on Chinese general mortality comes from studies of migrants, or their descendants overseas, mainly in South-East Asia and the USA. In the latter more detailed studies have been made of cancer mortality and cancer incidence than of other causes. The purpose of our study was to describe mortality in Chinese, born in China, and dying in the state of New South Wales from 1969-78.