Statistikk innhold
Statistics on
International accounts
The international accounts give an overview of the economic relationships between Norwegian residents and nonresidents. They comprise the international investment position (IIP), including other changes in financial assets and liabilities, and the balance of payments (BOP). As of 2020, the BOP and IIP Statistics are presented together under the heading International accounts. The international account consists of the current account, the capital account and the financial account. The current account shows exports and imports and other international transfers. The capital account shows capital transfers and transactions in intangible assets. The financial account shows net foreign financial assets and liabilities.
Selected figures from these statistics
- Balance of payments. NOK millionDownload table as ...Balance of payments. NOK million
1st quarter 2024 2nd quarter 2024 3rd quarter 2024 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 Current account: Current account balance 257 678 235 727 219 235 219 125 301 661 Balance of goods and services 183 655 178 477 147 027 198 616 240 185 Balance of income and current transfers 74 023 57 250 72 208 20 509 61 476 Capital transfers, patents, licenses etc, net 1 532 1 955 2 615 5 880 1 977 Net lending (+)/ Net borrowing (-), current account transactions 256 146 233 772 216 620 213 245 299 684 MEMO: incl. reinvested earnings Current account balance 241 781 218 749 203 623 203 710 286 456 Balance of income and current transfers 58 126 40 272 56 596 5 094 46 271 Net lending (+)/ Net borrowing (-), current account transactions 240 249 216 794 201 008 197 830 284 479 Financial account: Opening balance 15 212 893 17 313 069 17 362 180 18 621 582 19 590 653 Net lending (+)/ Net borrowing (-), financial account transactions 183 988 253 680 167 849 33 356 459 583 Other changes 1 916 188 -204 569 1 091 553 935 715 -1 685 167 Closing balance 17 313 069 17 362 180 18 621 582 19 590 653 18 365 069 Net errors and omissions -56 261 36 886 -33 159 -164 474 175 104 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Financial account, transactions. By functional category and financial instrument. NOK millionDownload table as ...Financial account, transactions. By functional category and financial instrument. NOK million1
1st quarter 2024 2nd quarter 2024 3rd quarter 2024 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 Foreign assets Direct investment -14 752 5 068 1 398 40 322 -12 644 Equity and Investment Fund shares/units 35 048 37 239 4 777 795 4 784 Debt instruments -49 800 -32 171 -3 379 39 527 -17 428 Portofolio investment 76 737 365 562 276 117 364 941 224 331 Equity and Investment Fund shares 79 029 162 173 63 242 144 997 57 260 Equity securities 72 632 139 263 -16 483 63 106 47 884 Investment Fund shares 6 397 22 910 79 725 81 891 9 376 Debt securities -2 292 203 389 212 875 219 944 167 071 Financial derivatives -13 550 38 721 -22 537 -100 260 82 491 Other investments 197 005 -166 594 -17 749 148 230 1 461 Other equity -27 28 0 0 0 Currency and deposits 219 921 -75 456 -79 003 -396 245 129 902 Loans -186 539 -54 261 108 036 588 182 -275 758 Trade credits and advances -18 338 10 762 -17 234 14 254 5 966 Other accounts recievable/payable 180 370 -46 239 -29 623 -57 292 138 857 Reserve assets (IMF breakdown) 20 919 10 026 15 242 -48 400 69 274 Assets - Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) -223 -94 533 -312 24 Reserve position in the IMF -1 263 261 -190 -231 -453 Other reserve assets 22 405 9 859 14 899 -47 857 69 703 Liabilities Direct investment -22 817 73 200 -12 741 101 198 -78 680 Equity and Investment Fund shares/units 23 097 70 210 10 564 69 753 -53 841 Reinvestment of earnings 5 370 5 370 5 370 5 370 5 370 Debt instruments -45 914 2 990 -23 305 31 445 -24 839 Portofolio investment -24 817 1 385 93 792 91 337 9 803 Equity and Investment Fund shares -15 351 -43 939 -2 640 -16 028 14 683 Equity securities -16 836 -50 566 -462 -1 275 11 322 Investment Fund shares 1 485 6 627 -2 178 -14 753 3 361 Debt securities -9 466 45 324 96 432 107 365 -4 880 Other investments 130 005 -75 482 3 571 178 942 -25 793 Other equity 0 0 0 0 0 Currency and deposits 159 931 -130 854 36 348 -300 495 303 927 Loans -214 518 74 787 -38 449 618 015 -458 210 Trade credits and advances -15 845 10 133 -3 178 8 336 -6 229 Other accounts recievable/payable 196 524 -30 330 8 351 -147 090 132 418 Liabilities - Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) 0 0 0 0 0 NET LENDING, FINANCIAL ACCOUNT 183 988 253 680 167 849 33 356 459 583 1Transactions in financial derivatives are included in other accounts receivable/payable under other investments in the balance of payments’ financial account. There is considerable uncertainty in the method used to calculate the transaction figures in derivatives, the figures under this item must therefore be used with some caution. Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - International Investment Position. By functional category and financial instrument. NOK millionDownload table as ...International Investment Position. By functional category and financial instrument. NOK million
1st quarter 2024 2nd quarter 2024 3rd quarter 2024 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 Foreign assets Direct investment 3 021 256 3 017 470 3 023 281 3 066 854 3 010 169 Equity and Investment Fund shares/units 2 094 230 2 131 838 2 135 999 2 150 388 2 135 519 Debt instruments 927 026 885 632 887 282 916 466 874 650 Portofolio investment 21 332 680 21 520 111 22 806 188 23 881 675 22 494 892 Equity and Investment Fund shares 14 974 911 15 134 991 15 948 000 16 750 569 15 513 722 Equity securities 14 296 629 14 430 688 15 141 556 15 883 850 14 675 009 Investment Fund shares 678 282 704 303 806 444 866 719 838 713 Debt securities 6 357 769 6 385 120 6 858 188 7 131 106 6 981 170 Financial derivatives 240 976 235 494 237 520 258 492 225 473 Other investments 3 092 095 2 894 469 2 897 175 3 071 562 2 989 994 Other equity 2 521 2 549 2 549 2 549 2 549 Currency and deposits 1 391 074 1 298 108 1 230 505 844 017 939 321 Loans 1 134 339 1 070 161 1 188 614 1 785 456 1 473 686 Trade credits and advances 146 893 155 793 138 807 156 251 155 189 Other accounts recievable/payable 390 053 342 075 310 843 258 102 391 562 Reserve assets (IMF breakdown) 897 256 890 068 937 179 922 513 930 190 Assets - Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) 78 496 76 799 78 778 81 288 76 937 Reserve position in the IMF 14 019 13 992 14 077 14 348 13 136 Other reserve assets 804 741 799 277 844 324 826 877 840 117 Liabilities Direct investment 2 614 715 2 687 190 2 659 531 2 576 700 2 470 140 Equity and Investment Fund shares/units 1 801 440 1 878 594 1 867 995 1 762 527 1 701 535 Debt instruments 813 275 808 596 791 536 814 173 768 605 Portofolio investment 4 640 451 4 602 790 4 703 662 4 869 431 4 817 475 Equity and Investment Fund shares 1 332 206 1 301 541 1 253 483 1 237 046 1 312 897 Equity securities 1 127 252 1 105 268 1 095 917 1 097 237 1 182 303 Investment Fund shares 204 954 196 273 157 566 139 809 130 594 Debt securities 3 308 245 3 301 249 3 450 179 3 632 385 3 504 578 Financial derivatives 284 755 278 368 274 137 278 936 251 309 Other investments 3 731 273 3 627 084 3 642 431 3 885 376 3 746 725 Other equity 0 0 0 0 0 Currency and deposits 2 033 546 1 886 989 1 931 345 1 657 262 1 907 373 Loans 1 129 040 1 195 979 1 158 312 1 807 580 1 308 013 Trade credits and advances 62 695 71 898 69 561 77 625 68 907 Other accounts recievable/payable 383 431 350 395 359 537 216 444 337 855 Liabilities - Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) 74 295 72 773 74 128 76 743 72 557 NET ASSETS 17 313 069 17 362 180 18 621 582 19 590 653 18 365 069 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Current and capital account. NOK millionDownload table as ...Current and capital account. NOK million
Current and capital account 1st quarter 2024 2nd quarter 2024 3rd quarter 2024 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 Exports, total 573 068 630 164 602 355 662 370 666 141 ¬ Goods (FOB) 434 960 475 620 436 363 503 467 514 431 ¬¬ Crude oil and natural gas 274 797 304 747 271 064 318 705 333 718 ¬¬ Ships 2 320 1 872 1 895 2 207 4 851 ¬¬ Petroleum activities, various goods 232 174 141 196 223 ¬¬ Other goods 157 611 168 827 163 263 182 359 175 639 ¬ Services 138 107 154 543 165 992 158 903 151 710 ¬¬ Gross receipts, shipping 39 955 42 920 41 552 40 011 39 105 ¬¬ Petroleum activities, various services 8 372 9 281 8 289 9 889 8 995 ¬¬ Pipeline transport 2 932 2 850 2 654 2 784 3 215 ¬¬ Travel 14 824 19 515 34 024 15 585 17 800 ¬¬ Transport and communication 11 550 13 154 13 945 14 873 12 458 ¬¬¬ Land transport, export 1 769 1 737 1 745 1 876 1 999 ¬¬¬ Supply, export 3 818 4 281 4 269 3 693 4 070 ¬¬¬ Air transport, export 2 606 3 327 3 969 5 005 2 690 ¬¬¬ Services related to transport, export 2 595 2 993 3 314 3 432 2 813 ¬¬¬ Postal and courier services, export 762 816 648 867 886 ¬¬ Financial and business services 32 464 35 077 34 180 40 366 35 978 ¬¬¬ Financial and insurance services, export 11 842 12 736 12 577 13 340 12 340 ¬¬¬ Audit services, juridical- and technical services, export 7 528 8 188 7 772 10 167 8 770 ¬¬¬ Research and development, export 2 005 1 575 1 528 1 985 1 864 ¬¬¬ Other business services, export 11 089 12 578 12 303 14 874 13 004 ¬¬ Other services 27 370 30 286 29 040 32 693 31 421 ¬¬¬ Construction, repairs and installation, export 7 599 8 944 7 743 8 242 7 518 ¬¬¬ Recycle and trash handling, export 2 200 3 388 2 850 3 900 3 489 ¬¬¬ Retail trade, hotel and restaurant , export 1 918 1 755 2 555 2 471 1 737 ¬¬¬ Publishing, film, music and broadcasting services, export 615 396 413 600 359 ¬¬¬ Telecommunication services, export 2 788 2 889 3 356 3 278 3 061 ¬¬¬ Information services, export 10 432 11 324 10 510 12 264 13 366 ¬¬¬ Other personal and government services, export 1 818 1 590 1 613 1 938 1 891 MEMO: Services export when import of goods FOB 136 579 152 771 164 352 157 218 150 096 Imports, total 389 413 451 687 455 329 463 754 425 957 ¬ Goods (CIF) 241 735 284 115 278 935 294 273 268 798 ¬¬ Ships 2 040 3 633 5 998 7 845 2 454 ¬¬ Petroleum activities, various goods 1 683 3 176 3 754 5 420 1 683 ¬¬ Other goods 238 012 277 306 269 183 281 008 264 661 MEMO: Import of goods FOB 232 638 273 689 268 753 284 071 258 229 ¬ Services 147 678 167 572 176 394 169 481 157 159 ¬¬ Operating costs shipping, excl. bunkers 14 116 15 040 15 040 14 473 14 473 ¬¬ Petroleum activities, various services 7 405 9 229 10 999 9 661 9 286 ¬¬ Travel 38 716 52 734 60 228 44 262 39 748 ¬¬ Transport and communication 8 787 9 774 9 607 9 779 9 344 ¬¬¬ Land transport, import 0 0 0 0 0 ¬¬¬ Ocean transport, import 200 200 200 200 200 ¬¬¬ Air transport, import 2 348 3 004 2 825 2 740 2 356 ¬¬¬ Services related to transport, import 5 974 6 356 6 265 6 524 6 575 ¬¬¬ Postal and courier services, import 265 214 317 315 213 ¬¬ Financial and business services 30 085 32 319 31 919 37 592 31 076 ¬¬¬ Financial and insurance services, import 6 376 6 778 6 803 7 483 6 628 ¬¬¬ Audit services, juridical- and technical services, import 5 954 6 538 5 958 8 385 6 426 ¬¬¬ Research and development, import 1 679 1 911 1 928 2 138 1 958 ¬¬¬ Other business services, import 16 076 17 092 17 230 19 586 16 064 ¬¬ Other services 48 569 48 476 48 601 53 714 53 231 ¬¬¬ Construction, repairs and installation, import 9 671 10 033 9 888 9 838 11 427 ¬¬¬ Recycle and trash handling, import 1 660 2 343 1 855 2 294 2 620 ¬¬¬ Retail trade, hotel and restaurant, import 654 679 641 638 623 ¬¬¬ Publishing, film, music and broadcasting services, import 7 172 7 264 7 620 8 263 8 031 ¬¬¬ Telecommunication services, import 1 558 1 520 1 643 1 564 1 491 ¬¬¬ Information services, import 22 482 21 857 22 356 25 259 23 448 ¬¬¬ Other personal and government services, import 5 372 4 780 4 598 5 858 5 591 MEMO: Service import when import of goods FOB 155 247 176 226 184 936 177 998 166 114 Balance of goods and services 183 655 178 477 147 027 198 616 240 185 ¬ Balance of goods 193 225 191 505 157 428 209 194 245 633 ¬ Balance of services -9 571 -13 029 -10 402 -10 579 -5 449 From abroad 227 851 245 963 224 041 209 940 205 044 ¬ Compensation of employees 1 677 1 637 1 682 1 678 1 753 ¬ Interest received 98 117 97 083 103 493 111 627 99 930 ¬¬Direct investment, interst receivable 12 253 10 002 11 024 11 375 11 533 ¬¬Other investment, interest receivable 85 864 87 081 92 469 100 252 88 397 ¬ Dividends etc. 112 683 128 053 97 940 77 738 85 918 ¬¬Direct investment, dividends etc receivable 42 244 21 500 26 781 21 597 8 409 ¬¬Portfolio ivestment, dividends etc. receivable 70 439 106 553 71 159 56 141 77 509 ¬ Reinvested earnings -9 125 -9 125 -9 125 -9 125 -9 125 ¬ Current transfers 24 499 28 315 30 051 28 022 26 568 To abroad 169 725 205 691 167 445 204 846 158 773 ¬ Compensation of employees 10 802 13 121 13 204 12 713 11 247 ¬ Interest paid 80 449 75 822 77 207 81 716 84 363 ¬¬Direct investment, interest payable 8 698 7 187 8 268 10 034 8 529 ¬¬Other investment, interest payable 71 751 68 635 68 939 71 682 75 834 ¬ Dividends etc. 26 616 64 771 26 715 48 047 17 619 ¬¬Direct investment, dividends etc. payable 10 513 33 189 15 222 24 239 6 711 ¬¬Portfolio investment, dividends etc. payable 16 103 31 582 11 493 23 808 10 908 ¬ Reinvested earnings 6 772 7 853 6 487 6 290 6 080 ¬ Current transfers from general government 20 428 19 527 14 871 28 370 13 602 ¬ Other current transfers 24 658 24 597 28 961 27 710 25 862 Balance of income and current transfers 74 023 57 250 72 208 20 509 61 476 ¬ Compensation of employees and investment income (Primary income), net 78 713 56 081 70 377 33 152 59 167 ¬ Current transfers (Secondary income), net -20 587 -15 809 -13 781 -28 058 -12 896 Current account balance 257 678 235 727 219 235 219 125 301 661 Capital transfers to abroad, net 1 564 1 982 2 660 5 932 1 969 Acquisitions of patents, licenses etc. net -32 -27 -45 -52 8 Net lending 256 146 233 772 216 620 213 245 299 684 MEMO: incl. reinvested earnings Balance of income and current transfers 58 126 40 272 56 596 5 094 46 271 Current account balance 241 781 218 749 203 623 203 710 286 456 Net lending 240 249 216 794 201 008 197 830 284 479 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - Current and capital account. Country breakdown. Current prices. NOK millionDownload table as ...Current and capital account. Country breakdown. Current prices. NOK million
Balance of goods Balance of services Current account balance 2023 2024 2023 2024 2023 2024 The world 860 410 801 260 -71 754 -79 089 886 567 890 267 EU 703 074 619 994 -95 661 -104 435 510 547 424 886 Other European countries 3 128 2 930 -726 -2 916 7 886 -288 Africa 6 201 7 764 7 964 5 630 13 501 21 534 North-America -15 030 -18 432 22 429 23 083 164 338 238 759 Latin America and the Caribbean -22 981 -19 113 8 904 9 712 2 702 7 928 Asia, Oceania and polar regions -125 510 -130 166 10 624 14 331 -3 920 -28 708 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - International Investment Position. By functional category and selected countires. NOK millionDownload table as ...International Investment Position. By functional category and selected countires. NOK million
Total Direct investment Portofolio investment Financial derivatives Other investments Reserve assets 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 Foreign assets All countries 31 201 096 29 650 718 3 066 854 3 010 169 23 881 675 22 494 892 258 492 225 473 3 071 562 2 989 994 922 513 930 190 United States 11 380 362 11 896 973 499 128 453 101 9 933 699 10 228 161 23 488 9 443 516 992 794 032 407 055 412 236 United Kingdom 2 019 057 1 820 642 277 997 281 989 1 288 634 1 113 355 114 303 96 723 274 170 263 451 63 953 65 124 Japan 1 652 554 1 278 885 19 394 19 569 1 562 437 1 202 235 .. 221 : 6 162 53 705 50 698 Germany 1 617 342 1 475 186 131 288 127 537 1 069 092 1 050 599 36 685 34 162 278 606 168 634 101 671 94 254 Sweden 1 783 125 1 766 275 424 264 429 669 908 595 761 273 30 025 33 525 418 692 540 661 1 549 1 147 Switzerland 825 076 644 859 19 164 16 144 728 879 564 578 717 959 71 422 59 483 4 894 3 695 China 220 418 217 549 14 882 14 779 188 520 186 159 0 .. 5 002 : 12 014 11 476 Liabilities All countries 11 610 443 11 285 649 2 576 700 2 470 140 4 869 431 4 817 475 278 936 251 309 3 885 376 3 746 725 0 0 Luxembourg 1 490 951 1 486 264 57 100 53 801 1 346 819 1 347 750 834 483 86 198 84 230 0 0 United Kingdom 1 268 290 1 318 245 83 373 79 441 660 085 645 423 92 077 110 362 432 755 483 019 0 0 United States 1 976 820 1 825 197 56 414 51 051 969 048 903 286 31 754 15 444 919 604 855 416 0 0 Sweden 1 122 051 1 246 534 227 056 215 224 247 828 270 772 22 281 16 987 624 886 743 551 0 0 China 21 597 19 521 17 464 15 432 1 706 1 844 0 0 2 427 2 245 0 0 Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ... - External debt. NOK millionDownload table as ...External debt. NOK million1
2nd quarter 2024 3rd quarter 2024 4th quarter 2024 1st quarter 2025 General government 1 482 796 1 456 016 2 007 218 1 588 700 Short-term Currency and deposits 0 0 0 0 Debt securities 17 074 15 669 14 090 16 333 Loans 308 365 248 568 604 568 407 317 Trade credits and advances 4 5 11 7 Other accounts recievable/payable 190 787 188 897 79 880 172 916 Long-term Currency and deposits 0 0 0 0 Debt securities 430 957 457 278 471 555 444 782 Loans 535 609 545 599 837 114 547 345 Trade credits and advances 0 0 0 0 Other accounts recievable/payable 0 0 0 0 Central bank 130 632 142 135 117 603 134 378 Short-term Currency and deposits 33 19 48 47 Debt securities 0 0 0 0 Loans 0 0 0 0 Trade credits and advances 0 0 0 0 Other accounts recievable/payable 57 756 67 981 40 791 61 760 Long-term Liabilities - Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) 72 773 74 128 76 743 72 557 Currency and deposits 0 0 0 0 Debt securities 0 0 0 0 Loans 70 7 21 14 Trade credits and advances 0 0 0 0 Other accounts recievable/payable 0 0 0 0 Deposit-taking corporations except the central bank 4 037 041 4 197 953 4 052 841 4 200 510 Short-term Currency and deposits 1 713 395 1 742 492 1 450 309 1 700 028 Debt securities 328 550 402 272 458 672 331 502 Loans . . . . Trade credits and advances 0 0 0 0 Other accounts recievable/payable 35 629 34 175 44 151 40 775 Long-term Currency and deposits 173 561 188 834 206 905 207 298 Debt securities 1 785 906 1 830 180 1 892 804 1 920 907 Loans . . . . Trade credits and advances 0 0 0 0 Other accounts recievable/payable 0 0 0 0 Other sectors 1 277 864 1 296 506 1 340 099 1 327 715 Short-term Currency and deposits 0 0 0 0 Debt securities 26 123 27 339 21 183 14 474 Loans 57 776 69 495 93 101 106 093 Trade credits and advances 71 894 69 556 77 614 68 900 Other accounts recievable/payable 115 110 117 596 101 142 114 273 Long-term Currency and deposits 0 0 0 0 Debt securities 712 639 717 441 774 081 776 580 Loans 294 159 294 643 272 776 247 244 Trade credits and advances 0 0 0 0 Other accounts recievable/payable 163 436 202 151 Direct investment 808 596 791 536 814 173 768 605 SUM TOTAL 7 736 929 7 884 146 8 331 930 8 019 908 1The external debt position shows the gross debt for the main institutional sectors. Shares and other equity are not included in the statistics. Explanation of symbolsDownload table as ...
About the statistics
The information under «About the statistics» was last updated 4 December 2024.
The BOP is a statistical statement of all transactions made between entities in one country and the rest of the world over a defined period of time, such as a quarter or a year. The IIP is a statistical statement that shows at a point in time the value of financial assets of residents of an economy that are claims on nonresidents, and the liabilities of residents of an economy to nonresidents. The difference between the assets and liabilities is the net position in the IIP and represents either a net claim on or a net liability to the rest of the world.
The Norwegian BOP and IIP is presented in accordance with the latest internationally approved guidelines. These are specified in "The Balance of Payments Manual, 6th edition" (BPM6), published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The underlying principles and definitions presented in the BPM6 are in full accordance with the international statistical framework for the National Accounts, as laid down in the manual "System of National Accounts 2008" (2008 SNA). 2008 SNA is a joint publication by several international organizations, including the United Nations and the IMF.
The European Union (EU) has compiled its own edition of the National Accounts manual, "European System of Accounts 2010" (ESA 2010), which accommodates special conditions in member countries. According to the European Economic Area Agreement (EEA Agreement), Norway is obligated to comply with ESA 2010. The reporting of National Accounts data, as well as BOP and IIP data, to EU's statistical office Eurostat, has a legal basis in regulation (EC) No 184/2005.
Basic concepts and recording principles
Like the National Accounts, the BOP and IIP accounts are constructed around three basic concepts: statistical units, economic values and transactions. Briefly, the accounting systems describe transactions and positions between statistical units in which economic values are provided or received in exchange for other economic values.
- Statistical units are institutional units which make economic decisions on an independent basis and can present complete accounts for their activities. The institutional unit normally coincides with a body corporate, e.g. a limited liability company or legal person.
- Economic items can either be real resources, i.e. goods and services, or financial items representing various claims and liabilities.
- The basic criterion for entering a transaction in the BOP or a position in the IIP, is that it involves an exchange between a domestic entity (resident) and a foreign entity (non-resident). Residents are institutional units that engage and intend to continue to engage in economic activities and transactions within a country's territory, with one year or more serving as the conventional guideline.
Positions
Positions are shown as the value of a financial item which, for example, an enterprise is in possession of at a point in time. Financial objects can be, for example, shares, other securities or different types of loans. In principle, stocks must be registered at market value. See description of valuation below.
Transactions
A transaction should in principle be allocated to the period in which there is a change of ownership of the economic value. Conventionally, it is often said that a change of ownership has taken place when both parties of the transaction enters the transaction in their books or accounts. In the case of exports and imports of goods, it is the moment that the goods cross the border and are registered through customs declarations, that determines the time of recording of the transaction and consequently the change of ownership.
All transactions shall be valued at market prices. Market prices are defined as amounts of money that buyers pay to acquire something from sellers; the exchanges are made between independent parties and based on commercial considerations only. Total exports and total imports shall be recorded at free-on-board (f.o.b.) prices. F.o.b prices are the value when passing the border of the country of exports. On a detailed commodity level, cost-insurance-freight (c.i.f.) prices are used for imports, i.e. including transport and insurance costs up to the border of the importing country. The exchange rate on the transaction date or the average rate for the shortest period applicable shall be used for converting transactions in foreign currencies into the national currency. Stocks of assets and liabilities are to be valued at prices or rates in effect at the time to which the balance sheet relates.
Other changes
Income and expenditure are defined in the National Accounts and BoP excluding gains and losses, irrespective of whether they are realised or unrealised. Such items, however, help to explain total balance sheet changes that take place during a period and are registered on the account for revaluation.
Income and expenditure
Income and expenditure are defined in the National Accounts and BoP excluding gains and losses, irrespective of whether they are realised or unrealised. Such items, however, help to explain total balance sheet changes that take place in the course of a period and are registered on the account for revaluation.
Assets and liabilities
Assets and liabilities are the components of the balance sheets of the total economy and institutional sectors. In contrast to the accounts that show economic flows, a balance sheet shows the positions of assets and liabilities held at one point in time by each unit or sector or the economy as a whole.
An asset is a store of value representing a benefit or series of benefits accruing to the economic owner by holding or using the entity over a period of time. It is a means of carrying forward value from one accounting period to another.
A liability is established when one unit (the debtor) is obliged, under specific circumstances, to provide a payment or series of payments to another unit (the creditor).
Double entry bookkeeping
International Accounts are based on the rules for double entry bookkeeping. All transactions are represented by two entries, a credit and debit entry. Most transactions are those in which economic items are provided or received in exchange for other economic items, entailing that offsetting credit and debit entries will normally be registered.
For example, exports of a good will be registered in External Trade Statistics and recorded as a credit entry in the current account, whereas the accompanying increase in foreign assets, e.g. in the form of increased deposits abroad, is registered in financial account and recorded as a transaction on the debit side of the BOP accounts. In other cases when items are given away rather than exchanged, or a recording is one-sided for other reasons, there is only one recording in the data sources. In these cases, a counter entry is constructed, in this example in the form of a transfer so that the double entry requirement is satisfied.
Structure
The International Accounts is an integrated part of the National Accounts and is constructed as a mirror image of the institutional sector "Rest of the World" in the National Accounts. In the BOP and IIP, transactions and positions are seen from Norway's point of view, while in the institutional sector accounts they will be seen from the perspective of the rest of the world. A surplus on Norway's current account will in the National Accounts appear as a deficit for the sector "Rest of the World".
The BOP consists of three main parts: a current account, which shows current transactions with the rest of the world, a capital showing capital transactions, and a financial account, which records investment transactions in the form of purchases and sales of financial instruments.
The table below illustrates the statement of transactions and positions in the BoP and IIPs (eller IAs) current, capital and financial accounts:
1) Current account balance
Balance of goods and services
Balance of income and current transfers
2) Capital transfers to abroad, net
3) Net lending, current- and capital account
4) Financial account, assets/liabilities
Direct investment
Portfolio investment
Other investment
Reserve assets
5) Net lending, financial account
6) Errors and omissions
The financial statements are presented as shown in the following table, broken down by functions (direct investment, portfolio investment, other financial investment and international reserves):
7) The financial position of at the beginning of the reference period
8) Investments during period (asset)
9) Borrowing
10) Gains, losses and other changes (netto)
11) The financial position of at the end of the reference period
Following definitions applies
The relationship between current- and capital account and the transactions in the financial account:
1+ 2 =3
4 assets – 4 liabilities = 5
3 – 5 = 6
Consistent International Accounts requires:
(3) = (5)
The relationship between positions and change in positions in the financial account:
7 + 8 – 9 + 10 = 11
Description of the accounts
The definitional relationship between the current account and the financial account is that a current account surplus, adjusted for net capital transfers and net acquisitions of patents and copyrights etc, increases net foreign assets (or reduces net liabilities), while a deficit on the current account will reduce net assets (or increase net liabilities).
The current account comprises, first, exports and imports of goods and services, with the balance of goods and services as a balancing item. In addition, data are provided for compensation of employees, investment income and expenditure as well as current transfers to and from the rest of the world. The balance for this component is net income and current transfers. The total balance of the current account is the sum of the balances of these two components.
The capital and financial account shows how transactions recorded in the current account result in changes in foreign assets and liabilities, and in addition to purchases and sales of financial instruments includes capital transfers. This entails that the balance on the current account must be adjusted for net capital transfers in order to arrive at net lending.
The financial account also includes transactions that do not have a counter entry in the current account. One example would be a resident who uses funds in a foreign bank account to repay a loan raised abroad.
Net lending
Total asset transactions less total liability transactions result in net lending. By adjusting net lending for valuation changes and other balance sheet changes not caused by transactions, we arrive at changes in Norway's net foreign assets/liabilities.
Net lending, current account =
Current account balance + Capital transfers to abroad, net - non-financial net investment
Net lending, financial account = Net acquiring of financial assets – net borrowing
Net errors and omissions are derived from net lending from the two accounts and can be derived from the current account minus the same item derived from the financial accounts. Although the BoP accounts are, in principle, balanced, imbalances occur due to imperfections in source data and compilation.
In addition to the classifications and categories described in the international BOP, IIP and National Accounts manuals, it may be mentioned that the Norwegian BOP, IIP and National Accounts make use of the product classification CPA (Classification of Products by Activity) of the EU and sector of the BPM6, 2008 SNA and ESA 2010. For more details, please check https://www.ssb.no/en/klass/klassifikasjoner/39.
Country Codes are based on the International Standard ISO 3166.
Functional categories
Direct investment:
Direct investment is a cross-border financial investment made by an investor for the purpose of acquiring a lasting interest in a foreign enterprise, and exerting a degree of influence on that enterprise's operations. An investment by owning 20 per cent or more of the ordinary shares is considered always a direct investment. The establishment of a subsidiary abroad is an example of a direct investment.
Portfolio investment:
Portfolio investment covers transactions in equities, other securities, and financial derivatives, except where these transactions relate to direct investment or reserve assets category. The Government Pension Fund – Global is not part of the reserve assets, though it is owned by the government and administrated by Norges Bank. This is therefore treated as portfolio investment as concerns investment abroad. Most important are shares and other equities, bonds and money market instruments (certificates and Treasury bills).
Financial derivatives:
Financial derivatives positions are divided into assets and liabilities, while the trasaction figures are net and presented under assets.
Other investments:
Other financial investments is a residual category that covers all investments that are not included in direct investment, portfolio investments and international reserves.
Reserve assets:
Reserve assets consist of those external assets that are readily available to and controlled by monetary authorities for direct financing of payment imbalances, for indirectly regulating the magnitude of such imbalances through intervention in exchange markets to affect the currency exchange rate and /or other purposes. In Norway, Norges Bank have reserve assets. International reserves basically consist of assets only, i.e. any foreign central banks' holdings of assets in Norway (for instance Norwegian securities) are not considered "reserve liabilities", but as portfolio investment in Norway.
The classification of financial assets and liabilities:
The financial accounts include a limited number of financial instrument groups with detailed claims and debt items in the balance sheets of institutional units. The financial instrument links one entity claims to another sector’s debt items. The financial instruments are grouped in claim and debt items with similar economic functions. For example, the payment function is characteristic of coins, notes and salary accounts, while credit is procured through different types of loans. In addition, the liquidity ratio has been the determinant factor for the ranking of financial assets in the classification.
Classification of financial assets and liabilities in the financial accounts is based on the recommendations of the SNA 2008 and ESA 2010. The classifications are described below:
Equity and other shares:
The instrument includes ordinary shares in limited liability companies, shares in general partnerships and shares in mutual funds. Shares in foreign companies are also included. Furthermore, the instrument includes tradable Norwegian equity certificates and general government capital contributions in public enterprises and the state lending institutions.
Dept securities:
Comprise short and long-term securities. Short-term securities is defined as negotiable securities with original maturity of maximum one year, while long-term securities comprise instruments defined as tradable standardised debentures with original maturity of more than one year.
Currency and deposits:
Comprise Norwegian and foreign notes and coins, all types of deposits with commercial banks and savings banks, Norges Bank and foreign banks.
Loans:
This financial instrument includes lending forms other than tradable debentures and certificates. Short-term loans are mainly quantified on the basis of the specifications in accounting statistics for financial corporations. The instrument comprises building loans, factoring, bank overdrafts, operating and working credit. Long-term loans comprise all loans other than short-term loans (mortgage bond issues, other medium and long-term repayment loans and financial leasing).
Trade credits:
Financial claims arising from the direct extension of credit by suppliers and buyers for goods and services.
Financial derivatives
A financial derivative contract is a financial instrument that is linked to another specific financial instrument or indicator or commodity and through which specific financial risks (such as interest rate risk, foreign exchange risk, equity and commodity price risks, credit risks and so on,) can be traded in their own right in financial markets.
Insurance technical reserves:
The instrument includes individual insurance savings and group insurance savings in private life insurance companies and total capital in autonomous municipal and private pension funds. Prepayments of premiums and reserves against outstanding claims in non-life insurance companies are also included.
Other claims:
Comprise claims and debt that is due to differences in timing between transactions and payments. For example credit extended to a customer/supplier credit, deferred tax claims/liabilities. Included are also other financial items that do not belong to the previously listed instruments. Derivatives recorded in the accounting statistics are included.
Reserve assets/liabilities IMF:
The foreign exchange reserves and claims on the International Monetary Fund (IMF) together constitute Norges Bank's international reserves. Claims on the IMF consist of three components: SDR accounts (Special Drawing Rights), reserve positions in the IMF and loans to the IMF (Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility).
Valution
Market value:
Market prices are defined as amounts of money that willing buyers pay to acquire something from willing sellers; the exchanges are made between independent parties and on the basis of commercial considerations only. The exchange rate on the position date or the average rate for the shortest period applicable shall be used for converting positions in foreign currencies into the national currency. Stocks of assets and liabilities are to be valued at prices or rates in effect at the time to which the balance sheet relates.
Name: International accounts
Topic: External economy
Division for National Accounts
National level
Quarterly statistics. The first version for quarter k t is published after k+60 days, followed by revisions in the following quarterly publications. The final version is published in August/September year t+2.
Reporting to Eurostat, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Organization for Economic Co-orporation and Development (OECD) and Bank for International Settlement (BIS).
Microdata are based on different sources
The purpose of the BOP and IIP Statistics is to provide reliable information on residents of Norway’s economic relationships with non-residents. The statistics are an integrated part of the National Accounts using the same principles and definitions.
The statistics is set to meet the international requirements given in the BPM. The international guidelines in BPM are revised during the last several years, with the latest update published in 2009 by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The sixth edition of the manual, BPM6, is the current version and is implemented in the Norwegian BOP and IIP Statistics in December 2014. Back data based on the guidelines from BPM6 is implemented in both the current- and capital account and the financial account.
The current- and capital account has time series going back to 1981, while the financial account has time series going back to 2005 (BOP) and 2012 (IIP). The current- and capital account has time series going back to 1981.
The main users are international organizations, IMF, Eurostat, OECD and BIS. The Balance of Payments and the International investment position are used by market analytics within finance and the business sector in general, and by governmental agencies for economic policy purposes. Used in the National Accounts, the BOP and the IIP give an exact mirror image of the sector Rest of The World in the national Accounts.
No external users have access to the statistics and analyses before they are published and accessible simultaneously for all users on ssb.no at 08.00 am. Prior to this, a minimum of three months' advance notice is given in the Statistics Release Calendar. This is one of Statistics Norway’s key principles for ensuring that all users are treated equally.
The IIP and the BOP have the same principles and detailing levels. IIP shows the positions of assets and liabilities abroad each quarter. The positions together with the transactions, revaluations and other volume changes give a consistent picture of the financial part of the external sector.
Full integration with the National Accounts makes the Norwegian BOP and IIP data consistent with both the exports and the imports figures and financial figures for the Rest of the World Account of the National Accounts.
The BOP has a somewhat broader scope compared to the External Trade in Goods statistics. The main deviations are that BOP includes as exports goods delivered to non-resident carriers in Norwegian ports, goods other than oil and gas exported directly from the Norwegian continental shelf, imports of fuel to Norwegian carriers in foreign ports, and direct imports of goods to the Norwegian continental shelf. In addition, the BOP converts exports and imports of certain types of goods as registered in the external trade statistics into exports and imports of services.
A table of the external debt statistics can be found under “tables”. The external debt statistics is based on the guidelines in BPM6 and External Debt Statistics: Guide for Compilers and Users. The quarterly data from the IIP statistics is the basis of the external debt statistics. The gross external debt liabilities equals the debt liabilities in the IIP statement, i.e., total IIP liabilities excluding all equity (equity shares and other equity) and investment fund shares. The first level of disaggregation of the external debt is by institutional sector. The second level of disaggregation is by maturity of external debt, and the third level of disaggregation is by type of debt instrument.
In the BOP and IIP Statistics there is a classification on functional categories, one of them being direct investment. There is a separate annual statistics on Direct investment published by Statistics Norway. The two statistics follows different principles and will therefore show different figures. Statistics Norway also publishes Portfolio investment abroad, and the statistics follows the same international guidelines as the IIP.
The main part of the data is collected under the provisions of the Statistics Act and the Act on the Supervision of Credit Institutions, Insurance Companies and Securities Trading etc.
EU-regulations incorporated in the EEA-agreement define the scope of the statistics. The following regulations apply to the BOP and IIP -statistics:
- REGULATION (EC) No 184/2005 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 12 January 2005 on Community statistics concerning balance of payments, international trade in services and foreign direct investment
- COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 1055/2008 of 27 October 2008 implementing Regulation (EC) No 184/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council, as regards quality criteria and quality reporting for balance of payments statistics
- COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) No 1227/2010 of 20 December 2010 amending Regulation (EC) No 1055/2008 implementing Regulation (EC) No 184/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council, as regards quality criteria and quality reporting for balance of payments statistics
- COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) No 555/2012 of 22 June 2012 amending Regulation (EC) No 184/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council on Community statistics concerning balance of payments, international trade in services and foreign direct investment, as regards the update of data requirements and definitions
- REGULATION (EC) No 716/2007 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 20 June 2007 on Community statistics on the structure and activity of foreign affiliates
The scope of the Balance of Payments and International investment position is defined in international guidelines in the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual (BPM6), System of National Accounts (2008 SNA, published by the UN, OECD, IMF, World Bank and the European Commission) and the European System of National and Regional Accounts (ESA 2010).
Like the National Accounts, the IIP and BOP accounts are constructed around three basic concepts: statistical units, economic values and transactions. Briefly, the accounting systems describe transactions between statistical units in which economic values are provided or received in exchange for other economic values. The Balance of Payments shall in principle include all transactions between unit’s resident of the Norwegian economic territory and non-resident units. See below for more about the sample that’s behind the BoP statistics.
The delineation of the economy towards the rest of the world is based on the concept of resident units. A unit is a resident unit when it has a centre of economic interest in the economic territory in question, i.e. when it is engaged in economic activity in a territory for a long period of time (at least one year).
The Norwegian economic territory includes mainland Norway together with the Norwegian part of the Continental Shelf, Svalbard and Jan Mayen with Bjørnøya.
The BOP and IIP statistics are based on data collected by other divisions in Statistics Norway.
The main sources for the current- and capital account;
- External trade in goods
- Petroleum Statistics
- Sample survey, non-financial enterprises,non-financial corporations and financial institutions not under supervision
- Structural Business Statistics, Ocean Transport
- Annual accounting statistics for the general government.
- Quarterly accounting statistics for financial corporations under supervision
- Travel survey
The main sources for the financial account;
- Quarterly accounting statistics for financial corporations under supervision. Positions are reported and some transactions (equity, other debt securities and loans) and some revaluations (exchange rate changes and other price changes) quarterly and annually.
- Quarterly accounting statistics for non-financial corporations and financial institutions not under supervision. Positions and revaluations are reported quarterly and annually.
- Annual accounting statistics for the general government. Positions and revaluations (exchange rate changes and other price changes) are reported.
- Quarterly data from the Norwegian Central Securities Depository (VPS) and data from a separate survey on mutual funds. Positions and transactions are reported.
Data collected for non-financial corporations and mutual funds are based on sample surveys. See each survey for more information on sampling, for example sample survey and how to choose the sample. For areas with incomplete statistical coverage, it is necessary to do estimations or use supplementary sources such as tax returns.
All major Norwegian financial and non-financial enterprises are covered in the BOP and IIP-statistics.
For most of the BOP and IIP items the figures used are as shown in the primary sources, as mentioned in the “Data source and sampling” section. Others are derived through estimations of which the most important are:
Current account
Services and income flows are estimated on quarterly basis by using the change as observed in the sampling survey data combined with last known annual totals. This estimation procedure is the same used in Quarterly National Accounts.
Reinvestment of earnings
Reinvestment of earnings is included in both the current and financial account. Reinvestment of earnings arising from a direct investor’s equity in its direct investment enterprise is calculated based on accounting variables profit and dividends.
Financial account
Financial transactions are to a large extent estimated starting with observed investment positions. The definitional identity employed is: opening position + transactions + revaluations = closing position.
Most of the revaluations due to exchange rate movements are estimated combining exchange rates and information on foreign currencies in use for different variables.
The household’s holiday houses abroad are estimated based on tax information. Price changes and exchange rates are estimated from information from various countries.
The non-financial enterprises and financial institutions not under supervision are based on a quarterly sample survey. This covers the major enterprises in the population and has a sample size of 500-600 enterprises. Quarterly numbers are then grossed up with figures from the annual BoP and IIP reporting that has a sample size of 3,000 enterprises. This is done by adding the enterprises only included in yearly survey to the fourth quarter and are then copied the following three quarters. These enterprises represent approximately ten percent of non-financial enterprises' total assets and liabilities.
Not relevant
Statistics Norway's standard rules for confidentiality are applied
Statistics Norway has adapted the international recommendations for compiling BOP and IIP statistics and is therefore comparable with other countries' BOP and IIP statistics. Annual and quarterly current account data on a consistent form are available back to 1981 in the Statbank. Correspondingly for the financial account back to 2005. Quarterly IIP data on a consistent form are available back to 2012 in the Statbank. The data has had several changes due to the new manuals BPM6 and ESA2010 and which has led to minor breaks in the time series. Longer times series for annual IIP data are available back to 1998 based on BPM5 guidelines. Longer times series for annual and quarterly current account data are available back to 1970. Correspondingly for the financial account back to 1981. For the period 1994 - 2004 monthly data for both current and financial account are available. An historic table for Balance of Payments is available back to 1949, see 22.8 and 22.9.
The Norwegian BOP and IIP Statistics makes use of information from a great variety of statistical sources and will reflect uncertainty and errors which might appear in these sources. However, the fact that IIP is a logical system within an even larger logical system of the National Accounts, it is possible to carry out a range of consistency checks to counterbalance the initial collection and then processing errors of the primary sources.
Preliminary quarterly and annual figures are revised until final annual figures are published (in August/September year t+2). See Administrative information, Frequency and Timeliness.
In addition, periodical main revisions give revised figures. A main revision of the BoP time series were conducted in December 2014 with the implementation of the new manuals Balance of Payments and International Investment Position (BPM6) and European system of national Accounts (ESA2010). The BoP financial account has revised its time series back to 2005.