External trade in goods, May 2016

Exports of goods came to NOK 56.2 billion in May, nearly 17 per cent less than in the same month last year. Imports of goods increased by 7.4 per cent and amounted to NOK 49.6 billion in May. The trade surplus is at its lowest since 1999, except for in April 2015, when the import of an oil rig had a particular impact. The mainland trade balance also shows a high deficit.

Lower income from crude oil and natural gas

The value of exported natural gas ended at NOK 10.4 billion – a fall of almost 30 per cent from May last year. The decline was caused by lower prices. In total, exports amounted to 8.9 billion standard cubic metres of natural gas in a gaseous state. This is 0.9 billion cubic metres more than in the same month the previous year.

The export value of crude oil amounted to NOK 14.4 billion in May, a fall from NOK 18.4 billion the same month last year. The decrease is due to lower oil prices. Despite the recent rise in oil prices, prices in May were NOK 107 lower per barrel than 12 months earlier. A total of 39.3 million barrels of crude oil were exported in May compared to 38.7 million barrels in the same month last year.

Exports of natural gas condensates accounted for NOK 123 million in May, a decrease of NOK 1.0 billion compared to a year earlier, when the export value for this commodity was particularly high.

Reduced mainland exports

Mainland exports in May fell to NOK 30.6 billion. This is nearly 5 per cent less than the value in the same month last year and 6.8 per cent lower than in the preceding month. Apart from exports of fish, export values in May declined for most of the main commodity groups compared to the same month last year.

The main commodity group machinery and transport equipment had the biggest fall in export values, declining nearly 25 per cent compared to May last year, amounting to NOK 5.9 billion. Exports were down in all the machinery sub-groups, in particular industrial machines, where the total value decreased by NOK 1.6 billion. In addition, items within the sub-group electrical machinery fell 28.6 per cent compared with May 2015.

Exports of refined petroleum products, which fluctuate considerably from one month to another, ended at NOK 2.6 billion in May. This is a drop of almost 20 per cent from the same month a year ago.

The export value of fish continued to rise. In May, exports of fish came to NOK 6.5 billion, an increase of about 30 per cent from the same month last year, however almost NOK 640 million less than in April 2016. As earlier, the increase was driven by the development in salmon prices. Fresh whole salmon had an average price of NOK 60 per kilo in May, compared to NOK 38 a year earlier. The export value of fresh whole salmon increased by 42.9 per cent to NOK 3.9 billion, while the volume fell by nearly 9 per cent compared to May 2015.

Increased imports of machinery

Imports of goods amounted to NOK 49.6 billion in May, an increase of 7.4 per cent from the same month in the previous year. The main commodity group machinery and transport equipment rose by nearly NOK 1.8 billion and totalled NOK 19.5 billion. There was a specific growth in imports of road vehicles. In May, imports of this sub-commodity group rose by nearly 17 per cent, to NOK 6.0 billion. Passenger cars accounted for more than half the value. As in previous months, imports of industrial machinery increased, amounting to NOK 6.4 billion in May - almost 16 per cent more than in the same month last year.

In the opposite direction, imports of refined petroleum products fell by nearly 60 per cent to NOK 1.2 billion. A fall in imports of diesel oil accounted for most of the decline, which was mainly caused by a significantly reduced imported volume. The value of imported metalliferous ores and metal scrap declined in May and came to NOK 1.2 billion – a drop of nearly 40 per cent from May last year, despite the imported volume being 27 per cent higher.