Norwegian Economy Grows In Third Quarter

26 Nov 2012

Norway's economy grew by 0.7 percent in the third quarter of the year, Statistics Norway said on Tuesday, announcing stronger than expected data.

While the figure is seen as robust compared to other Western countries, it represents a slight slowdown in Norway's growth rate since the start of the year as the economic crisis impacts many of its key European trading partners.

Norway's growth figures strip out the volatile oil and shipping sectors. The country is one of the world's biggest oil and gas exporters.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast growth of 0.5 percent for the period.

Meanwhile, Statistics Norway revised downwards its growth figures for the first half of the year, lowering the first quarter to 0.9 percent from 1.2 percent and the second quarter from 1.0 to 0.8 percent.

In the third quarter, economic activity was bolstered by services and industrial output linked to the oil and gas sector, the statistics agency said, noting however a drop in electricity production.

Including the oil and shipping sectors, overall gross domestic product shrank by 0.8 percent in the third quarter, impacted heavily by a 7.7 percent drop in hydrocarbon production caused by maintenance work on platforms, incidents and strikes.

Source: http://www.thelocal.no/page/view/norwegian-economy-grows-in-third-quarter