NOK 5 billion surplus

Preliminary figures show Norway's current account surplus totalled NOK 5 billion in May this year, while the surplus in May 1996 was NOK 6.1 billion. The external surplus for January to May 1997 was NOK 32.1 billion, up from NOK 31.9 billion for the same period in 1996.

The goods and services surplus came to NOK 7.9 billion in May this year, the same as in May 1996. Broken down, the surplus for May 1997 amounted to NOK 7.5 billion for merchandise and NOK 0.4 billion for services.

A deficit of NOK 2.9 billion is estimated for the interest and transfers balance in May this year. For May 1996 the deficit was NOK 1.9 billion.

Revaluations of overseas assets and liabilities, mainly as a result of exchange rate fluctuations, gave Norway a net gain of NOK 3.2 billion in May this year. Norway's net foreign assets increased by NOK 8.2 billion in May 1997, and were at the end of the month estimated at NOK 108.7 billion.

New Statistics

Balance of payments, May 1997.

Statistics are published every month in the Weekly Bulletin of Statistics. More information: Tore Halvorsen, tel. +47 21 09 48 48, e-mail: toh@ssb.no or Halvard Hansen, tel. +47 21 09 47 07, e-mail: hah@ssb.no.

Weekly Bulletin issue no. 30-31, 1997