![GDP Norway 1979 2004](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d2/GDP_Norway_1979_2004.png)
The economy of Norway is a
highly developed mixed economy
A mixed economy is variously defined as an economic system blending elements of a market economy with elements of a planned economy, markets with state interventionism, or private enterprise with public enterprise. Common to all mixed economi ...
with state-ownership in strategic areas. Although sensitive to global
business cycle
Business cycles are intervals of Economic expansion, expansion followed by recession in economic activity. These changes have implications for the welfare of the broad population as well as for private institutions. Typically business cycles are ...
s, the economy of
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
has shown robust growth since the start of the
industrial era
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
. The country has a very high
standard of living
Standard of living is the level of income, comforts and services available, generally applied to a society or location, rather than to an individual. Standard of living is relevant because it is considered to contribute to an individual's quality ...
compared with other European countries, and a strongly integrated
welfare system. Norway's modern manufacturing and welfare system rely on a financial reserve produced by
exploitation of natural resources
The exploitation of natural resources is the use of natural resources for economic growth, sometimes with a negative connotation of accompanying environmental degradation. It started to emerge on an industrial scale in the 19th century as the ex ...
, particularly
North Sea oil
North Sea oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons, comprising liquid petroleum and natural gas, produced from petroleum reservoirs beneath the North Sea.
In the petroleum industry, the term "North Sea" often includes areas such as the Norwegian Sea ...
.
History
Pre-industrial revolution
Norway was the poorest of the three Scandinavian kingdoms (Denmark and Sweden) during the Viking Age.
Prior to the industrial revolution, Norway's economy was largely based on agriculture, timber, and fishing. Norwegians typically lived under conditions of considerable scarcity, though famine was rare. Except for certain fertile areas in
Hedemarken
Hedmarken (, ; known as ''Hedemarken'' until 2003) is a traditional district in Innlandet county in Eastern Norway.
Hedmarken consists of the municipalities Stange, Hamar, Løten, and Ringsaker. In the past, it also contained the municipalities ...
and
Østfold
Østfold is a traditional region, a former county and a current electoral district in southeastern Norway. It borders Akershus and southwestern Sweden (Västra Götaland County and Värmland), while Buskerud and Vestfold are on the other side o ...
, crops were limited to hardy grains, such as oats, rye, and
barley
Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley pr ...
; and livestock to sheep, goats, cattle, pigs, and some poultry; in places this was complemented with
hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
. In areas of Central and
Northern Norway
Northern Norway ( nb, Nord-Norge, , nn, Nord-Noreg; se, Davvi-Norga) is a geographical Regions of Norway, region of Norway, consisting of the two northernmost counties Nordland and Troms og Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainlan ...
, the
Sami
Acronyms
* SAMI, ''Synchronized Accessible Media Interchange'', a closed-captioning format developed by Microsoft
* Saudi Arabian Military Industries, a government-owned defence company
* South African Malaria Initiative, a virtual expertise ...
subsisted on the nomadic herding of
reindeer
Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subspe ...
. Fishing all around the coast was dangerous work, though fish such as
herring
Herring are forage fish, mostly belonging to the family of Clupeidae.
Herring often move in large schools around fishing banks and near the coast, found particularly in shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and North Atlantic Oceans, i ...
, cod,
halibut
Halibut is the common name for three flatfish in the genera '' Hippoglossus'' and ''Reinhardtius'' from the family of right-eye flounders and, in some regions, and less commonly, other species of large flatfish.
The word is derived from ''h ...
, and other cold-water species were found in abundance. The introduction of the potato to Norway, promoted by practical priests and the king in Copenhagen in the 18th century, provided considerable relief and became common food for Norwegians.
All around the coast, the harvesting of fish (including cod, herring, halibut, and other cold water species) was an important supplement to farming and was in many areas in the north and
west
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
the primary household subsistence. Fishing was typically supplemented with crop-growing and the raising of livestock on small farms.
The economic conditions in Norway did not lend themselves to the formation of
feudal system
Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a way of structur ...
, though several kings did reward land to loyal subjects who became
knight
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
s. Self-owning farmers were—and continue to be—the main unit of work in Norwegian agriculture, but leading up to the 19th century farmers ran out of land available for farming. Many agricultural families were reduced to poverty as
tenant farmer
A tenant farmer is a person (farmer or farmworker) who resides on land owned by a landlord. Tenant farming is an agricultural production system in which landowners contribute their land and often a measure of operating capital and management, ...
s, and served as the impetus for
emigration to North America. Norway, after Ireland, became the country losing the most people to this emigration in percentage relative to its population
Industrial revolution
![Capital formation Norway 1865 2003](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Capital_formation_Norway_1865_2003.PNG)
Aside from mining in
Kongsberg
Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud, Viken county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production ...
,
Røros
Røros ( sma, Plaassja, ) is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Røros. Some of the villages in Røros include Brekken, Glåmos, Feragen, Galåa, and Hitterdalen.
The minin ...
and
Løkken, industrialization came with the first textile mills that were built in Norway in the middle of the 19th century. But the first large industrial enterprises came into formation when entrepreneurs' politics led to the founding of banks to serve those needs.
Industries also offered employment for a large number of individuals who were displaced from the agricultural sector. As wages from industry exceeded those from agriculture, the shift started a long-term trend of reduction in cultivated land and rural population patterns. The working class became a distinct phenomenon in Norway, with its own neighborhoods, culture, and politics.
Social democratic reforms
After World War II, the
Norwegian Labour Party
The Labour Party ( nb, Arbeiderpartiet; nn, Arbeidarpartiet; A/Ap; se, Bargiidbellodat), formerly The Norwegian Labour Party ( no, Det norske Arbeiderparti, DNA), is a social-democratic political party in Norway. It is positioned on the centr ...
, with
Einar Gerhardsen
Einar Henry Gerhardsen (; 10 May 1897 – 19 September 1987) was a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party of Norway. He was the 22nd prime minister of Norway for three periods, 1945–1951, 1955–1963 and 1963–1965. With totally 17 years in ...
as prime minister, embarked on a number of social democratic reforms aimed at flattening the income distribution, eliminating poverty, ensuring social services such as retirement, medical care, and disability benefits to all, and putting more of the capital into the public trust.
Highly progressive income taxes, the introduction of value-added tax, and a wide variety of special surcharges and taxes made Norway one of the most heavily taxed economies in the world. Authorities particularly taxed discretionary spending, levying special taxes on automobiles, tobacco, alcohol, cosmetics, etc.
Norway's long-term social democratic policies, extensive governmental tracking of information, and the homogeneity of its population lent themselves particularly well for economic study, and academic research from Norway proved to make significant contributions to the field of macroeconomics during this era. When Norway became a petroleum-exporting country, the economic effects came under further study.
Petroleum and post-industrialism
Oil-exporting country
![Oil production Norwegian North Sea](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/01/Oil_production_Norwegian_North_Sea.PNG)
In May 1963, Norway asserted sovereign rights over natural resources in its sector of the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...
. Exploration started on 19 July 1966, when
Ocean Traveler drilled its first well.
Oil was first encountered at the
Balder oil field at flank of the
Utsira High
Utsira High no, Utsirahøgda is a basement high and horst (geology), horst in the southwest of the Norwegian continental shelf. It lies east of the Viking Graben and west of the Stord Basin, Stord and Egersund Basin, Egersund sedimentary basin, b ...
, about 190 km west of
Stavanger
Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...
, in 1967.
Initial exploration was fruitless, until
Ocean Viking
The ''Ocean Viking'' is a humanitarian ship chartered from July 2019 by the SOS Méditerranée association.
The vessel
On 21 July 2019 SOS Méditerranée announced a new rescue campaign off the Libyan coast, using a cargo ship, the ''Ocean Viking ...
found oil on 21 August 1969.
By the end of 1969, it was clear that there were large oil and gas reserves in the North Sea. The first oil field was
Ekofisk
Ekofisk is an oil field in block 2/4 of the Norwegian sector of the North Sea about southwest of Stavanger. Discovered in 1969 by Phillips Petroleum Company, it remains one of the most important oil fields in the North Sea. This was the fir ...
, produced of crude in 1980. Since then, large
natural gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
reserves have also been discovered.
Against the backdrop of the Norwegian referendum to not join the European Union, the
Norwegian Ministry of Industry The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Trade and Industry (Norwegian: Nærings- og handelsdepartementet) was a Norwegian ministry responsible for business, trade and industry. On 1 January 2014 it was merged into Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries. ...
, headed by
Ola Skjåk Bræk moved quickly to establish a national energy policy. Norway decided to stay out of
OPEC
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC, ) is a cartel of countries. Founded on 14 September 1960 in Baghdad by the first five members (Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela), it has, since 1965, been headquart ...
, keep its own energy prices in line with world markets, and spend the revenue – known as the "currency gift" –
wisely
The ''Wisely Series'' is a series of Chinese Adventure fiction, adventure-science fiction novels written by the Hong Kong novelist Ni Kuang. The protagonist of the series is Wisely (sometimes also spelt "Wesley"). In total, there are 161 stories ...
. The Norwegian government established its own oil company,
Statoil, and awarded drilling and production rights to
Norsk Hydro
Norsk Hydro ASA (often referred to as just ''Hydro'') is a Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company, headquartered in Oslo. It is one of the largest aluminium companies worldwide. It has operations in some 50 countries around the world a ...
and the newly formed
Saga Petroleum
Saga Petroleum ASA was a Norwegian upstream petroleum company established in 1972 that was acquired by Norsk Hydro in 1999. In October 2007 it was made part of Statoil. The company was the only fully private oil company in Norway. It had partial ...
. Petroleum exports are taxed at a
marginal rate A marginal value is
#a value that holds true given particular constraints,
#the ''change'' in a value associated with a specific change in some independent variable, whether it be of that variable or of a dependent variable, or
# hen underlying valu ...
of 78% (standard corporate tax of 24%, and a special petroleum tax of 54%).
The North Sea turned out to present many technological challenges for production and exploration, and Norwegian companies invested in building capabilities to meet these challenges. A number of engineering and construction companies emerged from the remnants of the largely lost shipbuilding industry, creating centers of competence in
Stavanger
Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...
and the western suburbs of
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
. Stavanger also became the land-based staging area for the
offshore drilling
Offshore drilling is a mechanical process where a wellbore is drilled below the seabed. It is typically carried out in order to explore for and subsequently extract petroleum that lies in rock formations beneath the seabed. Most commonly, the te ...
industry. Presently North Sea is past its
peak oil
Peak oil is the hypothetical point in time when the maximum rate of global oil production is reached, after which it is argued that production will begin an irreversible decline. It is related to the distinct concept of oil depletion; while ...
production. New oil and gas fields have been found and developed in the large Norwegian areas of the
Norwegian Sea
The Norwegian Sea ( no, Norskehavet; is, Noregshaf; fo, Norskahavið) is a marginal sea, grouped with either the Atlantic Ocean or the Arctic Ocean, northwest of Norway between the North Sea and the Greenland Sea, adjoining the Barents Sea to ...
and the
Barents Sea
The Barents Sea ( , also ; no, Barentshavet, ; russian: Баренцево море, Barentsevo More) is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia and divided between Norwegian and Russian territo ...
, including
Snøhvit
Snøhvit ''( en, Snow White)'' is the name of a natural gas field in the Norwegian Sea, situated northwest of Hammerfest, Norway. The northern part of the Norwegian Sea is often described as the Barents Sea by offshore petroleum companies. ''Snø ...
.
Reservations about European Union
![Exports and imports as pc of GDP 1865 2003](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a0/Exports_and_imports_as_pc_of_GDP_1865_2003.PNG)
In September 1972, the
Norwegian parliament
The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years base ...
put to a referendum the question whether Norway should join the
European Economic Community
The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisb ...
. The proposal was turned down with a slim margin. The Norwegian government proceeded to negotiate a trade agreement with the EU that would give Norwegian companies access to European markets. Over time, Norway renegotiated and refined this agreement, ultimately joining the
European Free Trade Association
The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is a regional trade organization and free trade area consisting of four List of sovereign states and dependent territories in Europe, European states: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerlan ...
and the
European Economic Area
The European Economic Area (EEA) was established via the ''Agreement on the European Economic Area'', an international agreement which enables the extension of the European Union's single market to member states of the European Free Trade Ass ...
.
Although Norway's trade policies have long aimed at harmonizing its industrial and trade policy with the EU's, a new referendum in 1994 gave the same result as in 1972, and Norway remains one of only two
Nordic countries
The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; literal translation, lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmar ...
outside the EU, the other being
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
.
Although much of the highly divisive public debate about EU membership turned on political rather than economic issues, it formed economic policy in several important ways:
* Both politicians and the public came to terms with the fact that Norway's economic development was dependent on taking advantage of its
comparative advantage
In an economic model, agents have a comparative advantage over others in producing a particular good if they can produce that good at a lower relative opportunity cost or autarky price, i.e. at a lower relative marginal cost prior to trade. Comp ...
by specializing in certain areas for export and relying on import for everything else. This has had a significant effect on Norway's agricultural policy, which has been reshaped to address population patterns rather than self-sufficiency.
* The proceeds from oil revenue could not fuel private or public consumption if Norway were to sustain its prosperity when
oil reserves
An oil is any polarity (chemistry), nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of Hydrocarbon, hydrocarbons and is hydrophobe, hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilicity, lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usu ...
run out.
* In order to participate in European markets, Norway has had to open its domestic markets to European imports. Although some pricing and distribution issues (e.g., alcohol and automobiles) remain unresolved, Norway's consumer, capital, and employment markets are increasingly approaching those of Europe in general.
Norwegians have sought accommodations on a range of specific issues, such as products from fish farms, agricultural products, emission standards, etc., but these do not appear to differ substantially from those sought by bona fide EU members. It is expected that the issue of membership will be brought to a referendum again at some point.
Post-industrial economic developments
![GDP Norway 1865 to 2004](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/39/GDP_Norway_1865_to_2004.PNG)
Several issues have dominated the debate on Norway's economy since the 1970s:
* Cost of living. Norway is among
the most expensive countries in the world, as reflected in the
Big Mac Index and other indices. Historically, transportation costs and barriers to free trade had caused the disparity, but in recent years, Norwegian policy in labor relations, taxation, and other areas have contributed significantly.
* Competitiveness of "mainland" industries. The high cost of labor and other structural features of the Norwegian environment have caused concern about Norway's ability to maintain its cost of living in a post-petroleum era. There is a clear trend toward ending the practice of "protecting" certain industries (''vernede industrier'') and making more of them "exposed to competition" (''konkurranseutsettelse''). In addition to interest in information technology, a number of small- to medium-sized companies have been formed to develop and market highly specialized technology solutions.
* The role of the public sector. The ideological divide between socialist and non-socialist views on public ownership has decreased over time. The Norwegian government has sought to reduce its ownership over companies that require access to private capital markets, and there is an increasing emphasis on government facilitating entrepreneurship rather than controlling (or restricting) capital formation. A residual distrust of the "
profit motive" persists, and Norwegian companies are heavily regulated, especially with respect to labor relations.
* The future of the welfare state. Since World War II, successive Norwegian governments have sought to broaden and extend public benefits to its citizens, in the form of sickness and disability benefits, minimum guaranteed pensions, heavily subsidized or free universal health care, unemployment insurance, and so on. Public policy still favors the provision of such benefits, but there is increasing debate on making them more equitable and needs-based.
* Urbanization. For several decades, agricultural policy in Norway was based on the premise of minimal self-sufficiency. In later years, this has given way to a greater emphasis on maintaining population patterns outside of major urban areas. The term "district policy" (''distriktspolitikk'') has come to mean the demand that old and largely rural Norway is allowed to persist, ideally by providing them with a sustainable economic basis.
* Taxation. The primary purpose of the Norwegian tax system has been to raise revenue for public expenditures; but it is also viewed as a means to achieve social objectives, such as redistribution of income, reduction in alcohol and tobacco consumption, and as a disincentive against certain behaviors. Three elements of the tax system seem to attract the most debate:
**
Progressive tax
A progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases.Sommerfeld, Ray M., Silvia A. Madeo, Kenneth E. Anderson, Betty R. Jackson (1992), ''Concepts of Taxation'', Dryden Press: Fort Worth, TX The term ''progre ...
ation. At one time one of the most aggressive in the world, the top marginal tax rate on income has been decreased over time. In addition, Norwegians are taxed for their stated net worth, which some have argued discourages savings.
**
Value-added tax
A value-added tax (VAT), known in some countries as a goods and services tax (GST), is a type of tax that is assessed incrementally. It is levied on the price of a product or service at each stage of production, distribution, or sale to the en ...
. The largest source of government revenue. The current standard rate is 25%, food and drink is 15%, and movie theater tickets and public transportation 8%.
**Special surcharges and taxes. The government has established a number of taxes related to specific purchases, including cars, alcohol, tobacco, and various kinds of benefits.
**
Svalbard
Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range ...
. People living on Svalbard (Spitsbergen) pay reduced taxes due to "Svalbardtraktaten".
*Environmental concerns. A number of political issues have had their origins in ecological concerns, including the refineries at
Mongstad
Mongstad is an industrial site in Vestland county, Norway. The site sits on the border of the municipalities of Alver and Austrheim, with most of the site in Alver. The site features an oil refinery for Equinor and other oil companies, including ...
and the
hydroelectric power plant
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...
at Alta.
State ownership role
![Public vs private consumption Norway](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Public_vs_private_consumption_Norway.PNG)
The Norwegian state maintains large ownership positions in key industrial sectors concentrated in natural resources and strategic industries such as the strategic petroleum sector (
Equinor
Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger. It is primarily a petroleum company, operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. I ...
), hydroelectric energy production (
Statkraft), aluminum production (
Norsk Hydro
Norsk Hydro ASA (often referred to as just ''Hydro'') is a Norwegian aluminium and renewable energy company, headquartered in Oslo. It is one of the largest aluminium companies worldwide. It has operations in some 50 countries around the world a ...
), the largest Norwegian bank (
DNB
Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...
) and telecommunication provider (
Telenor
Telenor ASA ( or ) is a Norwegian majority state-owned multinational telecommunications company headquartered at Fornebu in Bærum, close to Oslo. It is one of the world's largest mobile telecommunications companies with operations worldwide, ...
). The government controls around 35% of the total value of publicly listed companies on the Oslo stock exchange, with five of its largest seven listed firms partially owned by the state. When non-listed companies are included the state has an even higher share in ownership (mainly from direct oil license ownership). Norway's state-owned enterprises comprise 9.6% of all non-agricultural employment, a number that rises to almost 13% when companies with minority state ownership stakes are included, the highest among OECD countries. Both listed and non-listed firms with state ownership stakes are market-driven and operate in a highly liberalized
market economy.
The oil and gas industries play a dominant role in the Norwegian economy, providing a source of finance for the Norwegian
welfare state
A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equitabl ...
through direct ownership of oil fields, dividends from its shares in Equinor, and licensure fees and taxes. The oil and gas industry is Norway's largest in terms of government revenue and value-added. The organization of this sector is designed to ensure the exploration, development and extraction of petroleum resources result in public value creation for the entire society through a mixture of taxation, licensing and direct state ownership through a system called the State's Direct Financial Interest (SDFI). The SDFI was established in 1985 and represents state-owned holdings in a number of oil and gas fields, pipelines and onshore facilities as well as 67% of the shares in Equinor. Government revenues from the petroleum industry are transferred to the
Government Pension Fund of Norway
The Government Pension Fund of Norway ( no, Statens pensjonsfond) comprises two entirely separate sovereign wealth funds owned by the government of Norway.
The Government Pension Fund Global, also known as the Oil Fund, was established in 1990 t ...
Global in a structure that forbids the government from accessing the fund for public spending; only income generated by the funds' capital can be used for government spending.
The high levels of state ownership have been motivated for a variety of reasons, but most importantly by a desire for national control of the utilization of natural resources. Direct state involvement began prior to the 20th century with the provision of public infrastructure, and expanded greatly into industry and commercial enterprises after the Second World War through the acquisition of German assets in several manufacturing companies. The largest expansion of state ownership occurred with the establishment of Statoil in 1972. Industries and commercial enterprises where the state owns stakes are and market-driven, with marketization extending to
public service
A public service is any service intended to address specific needs pertaining to the aggregate members of a community. Public services are available to people within a government jurisdiction as provided directly through public sector agencies ...
providers as well as industry.
Data
![GDP per capita development in Northern Europa](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c5/GDP_per_capita_development_in_Northern_Europa.svg)
The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1980–2021 (with IMF staff estimates in 2022–2027). Inflation under 5% is in green.
Economic structure and sustained growth
The emergence of Norway as an oil-exporting country has raised a number of issues for Norwegian economic policy. There has been concern that much of Norway's human capital investment has been concentrated in petroleum-related industries. Critics have pointed out that Norway's economic structure is highly dependent on natural resources that do not require skilled labor, making economic growth highly vulnerable to fluctuations in the demand and pricing for these natural resources.
The Government Pension Fund of Norway
The Government Pension Fund of Norway ( no, Statens pensjonsfond) comprises two entirely separate sovereign wealth funds owned by the government of Norway.
The Government Pension Fund Global, also known as the Oil Fund, was established in 1990 t ...
is part of several efforts to hedge against dependence on petroleum revenue.
Because of the oil boom since the 1970s, there has been little government incentive to help develop and encourage new industries in the private sector, in contrast to other Nordic countries like Sweden and particularly Finland. However the last decades have started to see some incentive on national and local government levels to encourage formation of new "mainland" industries that are competitive internationally. In addition to aspirations for a high-tech industry, there is growing interest in encouraging small business growth as a source of employment for the future. In 2006, the Norwegian government formed nine "centers of expertise" to facilitate this business growth.
Later in June 2007, the government contributed to the formation of the Oslo Cancer Cluster (OCC) as a center of expertise, capitalizing on the fact that 80% of cancer research in Norway takes place in proximity to Oslo and that most Norwegian biotechnology companies are focused on cancer.
[
]
Agriculture of Norway
Pest control
Pesticide usage information for the entire country is available from Statistics Norway
Statistics Norway ( no, Statistisk sentralbyrå, abbreviated to ''SSB'') is the Norwegian statistics bureau. It was established in 1876.
Relying on a staff of about 1,000, Statistics Norway publish about 1,000 new statistical releases every yea ...
.
Antimicrobial resistance
Overall the risk of antimicrobial resistance
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when microbes evolve mechanisms that protect them from the effects of antimicrobials. All classes of microbes can evolve resistance. Fungi evolve antifungal resistance. Viruses evolve antiviral resistance. ...
in the food supply chain
In commerce, a supply chain is a network of facilities that procure raw materials, transform them into intermediate goods and then final products to customers through a distribution system. It refers to the network of organizations, people, acti ...
s is "negligible". Specifically cattle, milk/dairy products, fish, seafood, drinking water, and pork are considered to be negligible risks. On the other hand, there is a more-than-negligible risk from contact with live pigs (farming and processing them), live poultry, and poultry meat.
Regional variation
Source: EurostatGross domestic product (GDP) at current market prices by NUTS 2 regions
Eurostat
See also
*
Economy of Europe
The economy of Europe comprises about 748 million people in 50 countries. The formation of the European Union (EU) and in 1999 the introduction of a unified currency, the Euro, brought participating European countries closer through the ...
*
Nordic model
Notes
References and further reading
*
* Dackling, Martin. "Traditional or modern peasants? odelsrett and bördsrätt in parliamentary debates, 1810–1860" ''Scandinavian Journal of History'' 46.1 (2021): 63-83
online* Eitrheim, Øyvind, Jan Tore Klovland, and Lars Fredrik Øksendal. ''A monetary history of Norway, 1816–2016'' (Cambridge University Press, 2016).
* Grytten, Ola. "Revising growth history: new estimates of GDP for Norway, 1816–2019" ''Economic History Review'' (Feb 2022, 75#pp 181-2
excerpt** Grytten, Ola Honningdal. "Revising price history: consumer price index for Norway 1492–2018." ''Scandinavian Economic History Review'' 68.2 (2020): 129-144
online* Hutchison, Ragnhild. "Exploring an early cross-border trade system: Norwegian copper in the 18th century." ''Scandinavian Journal of History'' 44.3 (2019): 261-286.
* Ikonomou, Haakon A., and Christos Tsakas. "Crisis, capitalism and common policies: Greek and Norwegian responses to common shipping policy efforts in the 1960s and 1970s." ''European Review of History: Revue européenne d'histoire'' 26.4 (2019): 636-657
online* Loftsgarden, Kjetil. "Mass Production and Mountain Marketplaces in Norway in the Viking and Middle Ages." ''Medieval Archaeology'' 64.1 (2020): 94-11
online
* Nelsen, Brent F. "Explaining Petroleum Policy in Britain and Norway, 1962‐90." ''Scandinavian political studies'' 15.4 (1992): 307-328
online* Stenersen, Øivind and Ivar Libæk. ''History of Norway from the Ice Age to the Oil Age'' (3rd ed. Dinamo Forlag 2007),
* Vinje, Victor Condorcet. ''The Versatile Farmers of the North; The Struggle of Norwegian Yeomen for Economic Reforms and Political Power, 1750–1814'' (Nisus Publications, 2014) ).
External links
Economic history of Norway, ''
EH.Net Encyclopedia of Economic and Business History
The Economic History Association (EHA) was founded in 1940 to "encourage and promote teaching, research, and publication on every phase of economic history and to help preserve and administer materials for research in economic history". It publi ...
'', 16 March 2008 article by business historian
Ola Honningdal Grytten
Ola Honningdal Grytten (born 30 May 1964) is a Norwegian professor, economist and economic historian. Born in Gothenburg, Sweden, he graduated with a MSc in economics degree cand.oecon. degree and dr oecon degree from the Norwegian School of Eco ...
, professor at
NHHOSE ALL SHARE GI*A substantial part of this article has been copied from the
Bureau of Public Affairs,
U.S. Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...
country overview for Norway''Norway''in ''
CIA World Factbook
''The World Factbook'', also known as the ''CIA World Factbook'', is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official print version is available ...
''
Statistics Norway
External links
OECD's Norway country websiteOECD Economic Survey of NorwayWorld Bank Summary Trade Statistics Norway* Tariffs applied by Norway as provided by
ITC'
Market Access Map an online database of customs tariffs and market requirements
{{DEFAULTSORT:Economy of Norway
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...