Economy - overview The Norwegian economy is a prosperous bastion of welfare capitalism, featuring a combination of free market activity and government intervention. The government controls key areas, such as the vital petroleum sector (through large-scale state enterprises). The country is richly endowed with natural resources - petroleum, hydropower, fish, forests, and minerals - and is highly dependent on its oil production and international oil prices; in 1999, oil and gas accounted for 35% of exports. Only Saudi Arabia and Russia export more oil than Norway. Oslo opted to stay out of the EU during a referendum in November 1994. Growth picked up in 2000 to 2.7%, compared with the meager 0.8% of 1999, but fell back to 1.3% in 2001. The government moved ahead with privatization in 2000, even proposing the sale of up to one-third of the 100% state-owned oil company Statoil. With arguably the highest quality of life worldwide, Norwegians still worry about that time in the next two decades when the oil and gas begin to run out. Accordingly, Norway has been saving its oil-boosted budget surpluses in a Government Petroleum Fund, which is invested abroad and now is valued at more than $43 billion.

GDP purchasing power parity - $138.7 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate 1.3% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $30,800 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 2%
industry: 31%
services: 67% (2000)

Population below poverty line NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%: 4.1%
highest 10%: 21.8% (1995)

Distribution of family income - Gini index 25.8 (1995)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 3.1% (2001 est.)

Labor force 2.4 million (2000 est.)

Labor force - by occupation services 74%, industry 22%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 4% (1995)

Unemployment rate 3.6% (2001 est.)

Budget
revenues: $71.7 billion
expenditures: $57.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

Industries petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp and paper products, metals, chemicals, timber, mining, textiles, fishing

Industrial production growth rate -1% (2001 est.)

Electricity - production 141.162 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source
fossil fuel: 0.49%
hydro: 99.31%
other: 0.2% (2000)
nuclear: 0%

Electricity - consumption 112.495 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - exports 20.259 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - imports 1.474 billion kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products barley, wheat, potatoes; pork, beef, veal, milk; fish

Exports $58 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)

Exports - commodities petroleum and petroleum products, machinery and equipment, metals, chemicals, ships, fish

Exports - partners EU 76.8% (Netherlands 11.4%, Germany 10.3%, France 10.0%, Sweden 8.4%), US 7.6% (2000)

Imports $33.5 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)

Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals, foodstuffs

Imports - partners EU 62.5% (Sweden 14.7%, Germany 11.9%, UK 8.1%, Denmark 6.4%), US 8.2%, Japan 5.2% (2000)

Debt - external $0 (Norway is a net external creditor)

Economic aid - donor ODA, $1.4 billion (1998)

Currency Norwegian krone (NOK)

Currency code NOK

Exchange rates Norwegian kroner per US dollar - 8.9684 (January 2002), 8.9917 (2001), 8.8018 (2000), 7.7992 (1999), 7.5451 (1998), 7.0734 (1997)

Fiscal year calendar year

NOTE: The information regarding Norway on this page is re-published from the 2002 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Norway Economy 2002 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Norway Economy 2002 should be addressed to the CIA.