s. Norway maintains an extensive welfare
system that helps propel public sector expenditures to more than 50%
of GDP and results in one of the highest average tax levels in the
world. A small country with a high dependence on international trade,
Norway is basically an exporter of raw materials and semiprocessed
goods, with an abundance of small- and medium-sized firms, and is
ranked among the major shipping nations. The country is richly endowed
with natural resources-petroleum, hydropower, fish, forests, and
minerals-and is highly dependent on its oil sector. Only Saudi Arabia
exports more oil than Norway. Norway imports more than half its food
needs. Oslo opted to stay out of the EU during a referendum in
November 1994. Economic growth in 1998 should be about the same as in
1997. Inflation probably will move up toward 3% because of tightness
in labor markets. Despite their high per capita income-outstripped
among major nations only by the US-and their generous welfare
benefits, Norwegians worry about that time in the 21st century when
the oil and gas run out.

GDP: purchasing power parity-$120.5 billion (1997 est.)

GDP-real growth rate: 3.5% (1997 est.)

GDP-per capita: purchasing power parity-$27,400 (1997 est.)

GDP-composition by sector:
agriculture: 2.9%
industry: 34.7%
services: 62.4% (1991)

Inflation rate-consumer price index: 2% (1997 est.)

Labor force:
total: 2.13 million
by occupation: services 71%, industry 23%, agriculture, forestry, and
fishing 6% (1993)

Unemployment rate: 2.6% (yearend 1997)

Budget:
revenues: $48.6 billion
expenditures: $53 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1994
est.)

Industries: petroleum and gas, food processing, shipbuilding, pulp and
paper products, metals, chemicals, timber, mining, textiles, fishing

Industrial production growth rate: 3% (1996 est.)

Electricity-capacity: 26.431 million kW (1995)

Electricity-production: 121.375 billion kWh (1995)

Electricity-consumption per capita: 26,547 kWh (1995)

Agriculture-products: oats, other grains; beef, milk; livestock output
exceeds value of crops; among world's top 10 fishing nations; fish
catch of 2.33 million metric tons in 1994

Exports:
total value: $49.3 billion (f.o.b., 1996)
commodities: petroleum and petroleum products 43%, metals and products
11%, foodstuffs (mostly fish) 9%, chemicals and raw materials 25%,
natural gas 6.0%, ships 5.4%
partners: EU 77.2% (UK 19.8%, Germany 12.7%