NOK 0.1 Billion Deficit

Preliminary figures show a deficit in the current account balance of NOK 0.1 billion in March of this year, compared with a surplus of NOK 2.7 billion in March of last year. In February the current account balance showed a deficit of NOK 0.2 billion.

The surplus in the balance of goods and services amounted to NOK 1.2 billion in March 1999, the same as in February. The balance of goods in March 1999 came to NOK 1.9 billion, while the balance of services had a deficit of NOK 0.7 billion. In March 1998 the surplus in the balance of goods and services was NOK 4.0 billion. Total exports increased by NOK 5.9 billion from February to March 1999, but were offset in the balance of goods and services by an equally large increase in imports. The increase in exports was mainly due to oil, industrial machinery, paper products, transport equipment and gross freight, while increased imports have been registered for industrial machinery, vehicles, operating expenses associated with shipping and travel services.

A deficit of NOK 1.3 billion has been calculated for the balance of income and transfers in March 1999, while the average deficit per month was NOK 1.5 billion in 1998. For March 1998 there was a deficit of NOK 1.3 billion. The interest income for March 1999 came to a total of NOK 3.7 billion, possibly the highest ever for an individual month.

Preliminary figures show that Norway's net external assets decreased by NOK 3.3 billion in March 1999, and were estimated at NOK 90.0 billion at the close of the month.

The current account balance includes both external trade in goods and the export and import of services. In addition, it includes income and expenses from assets in the form of interest and dividends on shares, etc. plus current transfers and transfers to and from abroad.

New Statistics
Balance of payments, March 1999.
The statistics are published monthly in the Weekly Bulletin of Statistics. For more information, contact: Bjornar.Ansnes@ssb.no, tel.: +47 21 09 48 35, or Vibeke.Aas@ssb.no, tel.: +47 21 09 47 07.

Weekly Bulletin issue no. 22, 1999