She has repeatedly engaged in the debate on taxes and economic inequality. There is probably no reason to doubt the Statistics Norway numbers, she says. But at the same time she points out that the study raises questions that may be of interest for future research. She also questions whether the researchers have fully taken into account that income is taxed at Does this change Norway's relative position as one of the countries in the world with the lowest income inequality?
Finally, Clemet points out that the quality of life for the vast majority of Norwegians has improved since the turn of the millennium. She wonders if it then makes sense to use a measurement of inequality that is so largely driven by the few at the top. She wants the Norwegian Parliament to increase taxes on the rich as quickly as possible. Translated by: Nancy Bazilchuk. The report in Norwegian only. The extremely rich. Does the Scandinavian model rein in the upper class?
Read the Norwegian version of this article on forskning. September - Rolf Aaberge studies economic inequality at Statistics Norway. Photo: Studio Vest. The green curve shows official figures. Blue and black curves show what the researchers think are more accurate numbers. The years , and illustrate what happened as a result of a change in tax law on business dividends.
A lot of money was taken out of companies in dividends before the change. The financial crisis in had almost no impact on the richest, according to official figures. The researchers' calculations show a different picture. Numbers and graphic: Statistics Norway. The list was published on the same day as the Statistics Norway report, in late September In total, Norway now has billionaires. This is especially true for individuals who have become richer in the last year.
Sources: Kapital magazine and TV2. This figure shows the share of income in Norway that accrued to the richest 0. These are the billionaires and more or less the same individuals included on Kapital magazine's list of Norway's richest people. Due to the petroleum sector, however, Norway experienced high growth rates in all the three last decades of the twentieth century, bringing Norway to the top of the world GDP per capita list at the dawn of the new millennium.
Nevertheless, Norway had economic problems both in the eighties and in the nineties. In a conservative government replaced Labor, which had been in power for most of the post-war period.
Norway had already joined the international wave of credit liberalization, and the new government gave fuel to this policy. However, along with the credit liberalization, the parliament still ran a policy that prevented market forces from setting interest rates. Instead they were set by politicians, in contradiction to the credit liberalization policy. The level of interest rates was an important part of the political game for power, and thus, they were set significantly below the market level.
In consequence, a substantial credit boom was created in the early s, and continued to the late spring of As a result, Norway had monetary expansion and an artificial boom, which created an overheated economy.
When oil prices fell dramatically from December onwards, the trade surplus was suddenly turned to a huge deficit Figure 6. Source: Statistics Norway. The conservative-center government was forced to keep a tighter fiscal policy. The new Labor government pursued this from May Interest rates were persistently high as the government now tried to run a trustworthy fixed-currency policy.
In the summer of the Norwegian krone was officially pegged to the ECU. When the international wave of currency speculation reached Norway during autumn the central bank finally had to suspend the fixed exchange rate and later devaluate.
In consequence of these years of monetary expansion and thereafter contraction, most western countries experienced financial crises. It was relatively hard in Norway. The state took over most of the larger commercial banks to avoid a total financial collapse. After the suspension of the ECU and the following devaluation, Norway had growth until , due to optimism, an international boom and high prices of petroleum.
The Asian financial crisis also rattled the Norwegian stock market. At the same time petroleum prices fell rapidly, due to internal problems among the OPEC countries.
Hence, the krone depreciated. The fixed exchange rate policy had to be abandoned and the government adopted inflation targeting. Along with changes in monetary policy, the center coalition government was also able to monitor a tighter fiscal policy. At the same time interest rates were high. As result, Norway escaped the overheating process of without any devastating effects. Today the country has a strong and sound economy. The petroleum sector is still very important in Norway.
In this respect the historical tradition of raw material dependency has had its renaissance. Unlike many other countries rich in raw materials, natural resources have helped make Norway one of the most prosperous economies in the world.
Growth and Development. Oslo: NUPI, Brautaset, Camilla. Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration, Bruland, Kristine. British Technology and European Industrialization. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, Oslo: Scandinavian University Press, Klovland and Jan F.
Qvigstad, editors. Historical Monetary Statistics for Norway, Grytten, Ola Honningdal. Ola Honningdal. Hodne, Fritz. The Norwegian Economy, London: Croom Helm and St.
Hodne, Fritz and Ola Honningdal Grytten. Bergen: Fagbokforlaget, Klovland, Jan Tore. Norges Bank: Occasional Papers , no. Lange, Even, editor. Teknologi i virksomhet.
Verkstedsindustri i Norge etter Oslo: Ad Notam Forlag, Nordvik, Helge W. Historisk tidsskrift 58, no. Citation: Grytten, Ola. Net Encyclopedia, edited by Robert Whaples. March 16, Please read our Copyright Information page for important copyright information. Send email to admin eh. Newsletters To join the newsletters or submit a posting go to click here. Source: Grytten a During the last decades of the eighteenth century the Norwegian economy bloomed along with a first era of liberalism.
After Independence Figure 2 shows annual development in GDP by expenditure in fixed prices from to Figure 2 Gross Domestic Product for Norway by Expenditure Category in Norwegian Kroner Source: Grytten b Stagnation and Institution Building, The newborn state lacked its own institutions, industrial entrepreneurs and domestic capital.
The Great Boom, After the Norwegian spesidaler gained its par value to silver in , Norway saw a period of significant economic growth up to the mid s. Figure 3 Money Aggregates for Norway, Source: Klovland a In fact, Norway pursued a long, but non-persistent deflationary monetary policy aimed at restoring the par value of the krone NOK up to May Figure 4 Unemployment Rate and Public Relief Work as a Percent of the Work Force, Source: Hodne and Grytten The standard of living became poorer in the primary sector, among those employed in domestic services and for the underemployed and unemployed and their households.
Economic Planning and Growth, After the war the challenge was to reconstruct the economy and re-establish political and economic order. Figure 5 Public Sector as a Percent of GDP, Source: Hodne and Grytten Petroleum Economy and Neoliberalism, to the Present After the Bretton Woods system fell apart between August and March and the oil price shock in autumn , most developed economies went into a period of prolonged recession and slow growth.
An Economic History of Norway, Tapir: Trondheim, This cohort is six times more likely to feel depressed than other young Norwegians, nine times as likely to suffer from poor health and more at risk of remaining outside the labour market for the long term, according to OECD figures. She argues that Norway needs to work harder to diversify its industries in order to remain competitive in future.
This might include expanding its technology, raw material and renewable energy sectors, all alongside an emerging start-up scene. It has grown quickly in recent years but still lags behind its Nordic neighbours.
Employers will also have to be more open to attracting international talent to fill the jobs created outside its oil and gas sector, she suggests. Norway perceives this to be a central priority, and it should be.
Generation Project. Generation Project Best of Unlike most millennials, Norway's are rich. Share using Email. By Maddy Savage. Will this golden age last?
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