Economic Survey 3-2013

The cyclical upturn in Norway that began around year-end 2010/2011 came to a halt at the end of 2012. Mainland economic growth through 2013 has been lower than trend growth. The low growth among Norway’s trading partners has led to stagnation in exports. Viewed in conjunction with surprisingly slow growth in household consumption, this explains much of the development in GDP. Manufacturing, on the other hand, has continued to grow appreciably faster than the rest of the mainland economy. The engineering industry is experiencing substantial growth, to a great extent as a result of increased petroleum investment, while growth in many other manufacturing segments is weak due to the global economic situation. Construction has continued to grow, driven by a rise in housing starts, but saw a levelling off in 2013. Low consumption growth has led to very weak developments in market-oriented services.