National accounts, September 2012

In manufacturing, growth was especially evident in production of machinery and equipment and ships and oil platforms, whereas traditional export-oriented industries such as the manufacture of basic metals and metal products and paper and paper products showed a decline from the 2nd to the 3rd quarter, according to preliminary seasonal and calendar-adjusted constant price figures. Manufacture and mining grew in total by 2.7 per cent.

Negative contribution from electricity production

Other goods-producing industries made a negative contribution to the growth in GDP of mainland Norway in the 3rd quarter, in particular the fall in production and distribution of electricity, as well as traditional fisheries. Construction was about at the same level as in the 2nd quarter of 2012, after continued growth since the 1st quarter of 2011.

Dichotomy also in service-producing industries

In service-producing industries excluding general government, marked growth was seen in technical services and administrative and support service activities. Services linked to petroleum activities were on the rise. Wholesale and retail trade also showed a marked increase in the 3rd quarter. Service-producing industries excluding general government grew in total by 0.8 per cent.

Value added in general government grew by 0.4 per cent, up from the stagnation seen in the 2nd quarter, in which activity was affected by strikes. Value added in local and central government increased by 0.5 per cent and 0.3 per cent respectively.

Extraction of crude oil and natural gas fell by 7.7 per cent in the 3rd quarter; partly due to planned maintenance, technical problems and strikes, which contributed to a decline in total GDP of 0.8 per cent.

Marked growth in household consumption of services

Households' consumption of services was up 1 per cent from the 2nd to the 3rd quarter of 2012, in which the strongest contributions were from the consumption of recreation and transport services. Consumption of goods grew by 0.2 per cent, after a rise of 1.1 per cent in the 2nd quarter. Lower consumption of food, beverages and electricity and increased consumption of transportation, clothing and footwear were seen in the figures for the 3rd quarter.

Households' consumption abroad was up by 3.1 per cent and contributed in isolation to a rise in the final consumption expenditure of households of 0.2 percentage points.

Higher imports and lower exports

Exports fell by 3.1 per cent in the 3rd quarter, mainly due to the decline in exports of oil and gas. Exports of traditional goods were slightly up in the 3rd quarter; the export of machinery and equipment increased while electricity fell.

Imports of traditional goods rose by 1.9 per cent. Imports of services were also on the rise. Repair and installation of machinery and equipment contributed strongly to the total increase of services of 3.6 per cent. Total imports grew by 1.1 per cent.

Increased investments in household dwellings

Household gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) in dwellings grew by 6.8 per cent in the 3rd quarter, up from 3.7 per cent in the 2nd quarter. In 2011, preliminary figures show an increase of 22 per cent in investment in dwellings, after a steady decline from the 2nd half of 2007.

GFCF in general government also rose slightly from the 2nd to the 3rd quarter, while GFCF in industries was lower than in the previous quarter. Investments in petroleum activities remained at a high level.

Higher employment

There has been marked growth in employed persons throughout the quarters of 2012. In the 3rd quarter, employment grew by 0.5 per cent. In particular, employment in manufacturing industries, construction and petroleum activities was on the rise.

Tables

Published tables