Changes in the credit aggregate C3

The following changes concerns table 11598 and will be implemented with the release of the C3- statistics November 28. 2024.

Changed method for corrections

The credit indicators focus on transactions, and transaction and growth estimates are corrected for changes in stocks that are not due to new borrowings or repayments of loans. Other changes in stock that are not new borrowings or repayments are corrected for. Statistics Norway have among other things corrected for debt-conversion such as debt-for-equity swaps. After an updated assessment Statistics Norway have concluded that debt-conversion is a transaction and should therefore not be corrected for. This assessment is in accordance with the IMF Balance of Payments and International Position Manual. This method change will mean that debt-conversion is treated the same way as in C2 and in the Foreign assets and liabilities statistics.

Changes in scope

In Internal memo 2019/9 (only in Norwegian) there are multiple recommendations for changes in the credit and money supply indices. One of the recommendations is to harmonize the scope of the debt in C2 and the foreign debt in C3, by excluding the internal debt in C3. Statistics Norway deems it reasonable to change the scope of the statistics and the methods for correction at the same time. The main arguments for excluding the internal debt is as discussed in the memo:

• Internal debt is not included in the C2 statistics, which means that the variables are different between the aggregates
• That the demand for internal debt for non-financial companies normally is motivated by other factors than the demand for credit.

Additionally, almost all the debt-conversion that has been corrected in the C3 statistics, is internal debt. This means that the method change will have less impact when the changes are implemented at the same time.

Revision of older periods

In a normal production cycle of C3 stock data are revised for the last 10 quarters, and transactions and growth data are revised for the last 6 quarters. With the implementation of these changes Statistics Norway will revise all periods in table 11598 with the release of new data for Q3 2024 on November 28 2024.

Details on the changes in scope

The table below shows all the codes that were included in the C3-statistics and which codes that will be removed with the release of the statistics for Q3 2024. For details on the balance of payment reporting, please visit Reporting balance of payments data (BoP reporting)