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NOK 113 billion in current account surplus
statistikk
2012-03-07T10:00:00.000Z
External economy;National accounts and business cycles;External economy
en
ur, International accounts, current account balance, direct investments, operational and capital accounts, financial accounts, investment abroad, foreign investment, transactions, stocks, financial assets, liabilities, portofolio investment, financial investments, revaluations, current account balance, balance of income and current transfers, reinvested earnings, net assets, BOP geographical breakdown, balance of goods, balance of services, BOP, IIP, balance of payments, international investment positionBalance of payments, National accounts , Foreign assets and liabilities , National accounts and business cycles, External economy
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International accounts, Q4 2011

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NOK 113 billion in current account surplus

The surplus on the current account was NOK 3 billion higher in the fourth quarter than in the third quarter of 2011. Altogether, the surplus on the current account balance was NOK 396 billion in 2011. This is NOK 82 billion higher than in 2010.

Both the balance of goods and services and income and current transfers contributed to the surplus on the current account in 2011.

Current balance to abroad. 1st quarter 2005-4th quarter 2011. NOK billion

Increased goods and services balance

The export of goods increased by NOK 106 billion from 2010 to 2011. The main reason for this was the sharp rise in prices for crude oil and natural gas. In 2011 the price increased by 24 per cent, while the export volume declined by 5 per cent. The increase in export value amounted to NOK 89 billion. The import of goods increased by NOK 49 billion in the same period. Metals, machinery and equipment, and cars were among the products that drew imports up.

Exports of services decreased by NOK 3 billion from 2010 to 2011, while imports of services declined by NOK 11 billion. Altogether, the goods and services balance increased by NOK 65 billion from 2010 to 2011.

Increased dividends from abroad

The surplus on the income and transfers balance was NOK 6 billion in the fourth quarter, and NOK 19 billion for the year altogether. Compared with 2010, both revenues and expenditures increased. Payments of dividends from abroad increased by 26 per cent to NOK 103 billion, while interest income increased by 9 per cent to NOK 102 billion. On the expenditure side, payments of interest to abroad increased by 9 per cent to NOK 80 billion, while the payment of dividends increased by 6 per cent to NOK 62 billion.

Large reductions of loans

Loans to and from non-residents through transactions were reduced by NOK 214 and 250 billion respectively in the fourth quarter of 2011. The changes corresponded to changes in the loans of the Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG), which consist mainly of repurchase agreements.

The GPFG made portfolio investment transactions in equity capital of NOK 73 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011 and of NOK 243 billion in 2011 as a whole. In 2010, The GPFG mainly invested in debt securities, for a total of NOK 217 billion.

Direct investment abroad amounted to NOK 40 billion in the fourth quarter of 2011 and NOK 105 billion in 2011 as a whole. Foreign direct investment in Norway was considerably smaller, with NOK 25 and NOK 14 billion respectively.

As regards other investment, there were, as in the previous quarter, large increases in banks’deposits with and from non-residents. The changes in the deposits with non-residents are connected to the deposits from non-resident banks.

Balance of payments. 1. quarter 2008 to 4. quarter 2011. NOK billion
  2009 2010 2011 1. quarter 2009 2. quarter 2009 3. quarter 2009 4. quarter 2009 1. quarter 2010 2. quarter 2010 3. quarter 2010 4. quarter 2010 1. quarter 2011 2. quarter 2011 3. quarter 2011 4. quarter 2011
Balance of goods and services       269       313        377 72 59 59 79 94 66 57 95 88 85 97  107
Balance of income and current transfers -14 1 19 -35 17 3 1 -9 11 7 -8 -9 8 14 6
Current account balance  255  314  396 37 76 61 80 86 77 64 87 80 93  110  113
Capital transfers etc. to abroad, net 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Net lending  253  313  394 37 75 61 80 85 77 64 86 80 93  110  112
Direct investment, net  101 34 91 15 -25 90 22 22 49 -3 -35 32 20 24 15
Portifolio investment, net -5  106  251 85 27 21 -138 17 -42 85 46 22 79 78 72
Other investment, net  310  108  167 10 78 1  221 5  156 -42 -11 46 40 41 39
Revaluations, net 79  162 -182 -242  275  141 -95 89 -37 49 62 -71 -47 -196  132
Increase in Norway`s net assets  333  474  212 -205  350  203 -15  174 39  113  148 8 46 -86  243

Revisions

Reinvested earnings have been adjusted from the first quarter of 2010 due to new information.

For more information on price and volume developments within export and import, see the quarterly national accounts .

More details on the export and import of goods are available at statistics on external trade in goods .

For more information on the Norwegian external economy see Focus on external economy .