Oil and gas produced an extreme profit for Norway last year
Increased export revenues from energy resulted in a trade balance surplus of roughly 162 million USD in 2022. This is a level that has never been observed before.
According to Statistics Norway (SSB), demand for oil and gas combined with sky-high prices last year produced an exceptional surplus on the trade balance in 2022.
But the interest and current transfers balance also strengthened vis-à-vis abroad. This contributed to the current account surplus almost tripling compared to 2021.
An increase of 190 per cent
“The increase in the surplus on the trade balance was 190 per cent and the surplus was of the same order of magnitude as total Norwegian imports,” Pål Sletten says. He is head of the Division for national accounts at Statistics Norway.
Increased price growth in Norway and amongst our trading partners meant that we both imported and exported more than before. But overall price growth was higher for exports than for imports.
The trade balance thus tipped in Norway's favour, with a strengthened trade relationship with other countries and a larger surplus.
Norwegian kroner weakened by four per cent through 2022, as measured by the import-weighted exchange rate index, which helped to raise the value of imports measured in Norwegian kroner.
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Translated by Alette Bjordal Gjellesvik.
Read the Norwegian version of this article on forskning.no
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