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Country Commercial Guides FY 2000: Norway Report prepared by U.S. Embassy Oslo, released July 1999 Note*

CHAPTER I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This Country Commercial Guide (CCG) presents a comprehensive look at Norway's commercial environment, using economic, political and market analysis. The CCG was established by recommendation of the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee (TPCC), a multi-agency task force, to consolidate various reporting documents prepared for the U.S. business community. Country Commercial Guides are prepared annually at U.S. embassies through the combined efforts of several U.S. government agencies.

Norway is modern, industrial, oil-rich country with a population of 4.4 million people living in a 1,100 mile long, narrow, mountainous country that has a coastline three times its length and strong traditions of fishing and shipping. Norway borders Russia, Finland and Sweden. The three Scandinavian countries - Denmark, Norway and Sweden-- are closely related to one another in terms of language, ethnic roots, religion, history and a host of other ways, but they also are different in many ways, too.

Norway has one of the healthiest economies in the world, thanks, largely, to its status as being the second largest exporter of crude oil in the world and one of the largest exporters of natural gas. Other major industries are prospering as well - IT, fishing, pulp and paper products, although Norway's shipbuilding industry is under increasingly heavy competition from overseas shipyards. Norway's unemployment rate is one of the lowest in the world (below 5 percent), while inflation has been kept in the 2 to 3 percent range during the past few years. Per capita GDP income of almost $ 33,500 exceeds that of the USA. Almost all Norwegians are fluent in English and most of them have very close cultural and family ties to America. Norwegian business ethics are very similar to American business ethics.

Norway is not a member of the European Union (EU), but it is linked to the EU through the previously negotiated European Economic Area (EEA) agreement, which provides for favorable access to the EU market for most Norwegian non-agricultural products. Meanwhile, Norway is protecting its access to EU markets by adopting most of the EU regulations being approved in Brussels.

American exporters and investors may very well benefit by Norway being outside of the EU. The American business presence in Norway is very broad and deep. There are more than 220 U.S. branches and subsidiaries operating in Norway and their numbers are growing monthly. An estimated 3,000 more U.S. firms are represented in Norway by up to 2,000 Norwegian agents and distributors. The U.S. is Norway's leading foreign investor nation by a wide margin - more than $ 7 billion, over twice the investment level of the second largest investing nation - Sweden. The American Chamber of Commerce in Norway is a dynamic and growing voice for American business in the country and a new Visit USA Committee is aggressively promoting travel to America. America is Norway's fifth largest source of imports behind four (neighboring) EU countries.

Over the next five years Norway will be making major investments into its information technologies and defense sectors, worth more than $ 10 billion. American companies have excellent opportunities to capture a significant share of these contract awards.

Country Commercial Guides are available for U.S. exporters from the National Trade Data Bank's CD-ROM or via the Internet. Please contact STAT-USA at 1-800-STAT-USA for more information. Country Commercial guides can be accessed via the World Wide Web at: http://www.stat-usa.gov, http://1997-2001.state.gov/. and http://www.mac.doc.gov. They can also be ordered in hard copy or on diskette from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) at 1-800-553-NTIS. U.S. exporters seeking general information/assistance and country-specific commercial information should contact the U.S. Department of Commerce, Trade Information Center by phone at 1-800-USA-TRAD(E)or by fax at (202)482-4473.

Additional information on Norway and the full services of the American Embassy in Oslo can be found on the Internet at http://www.usembassy.no. For business travel planning to Norway and other destinations in Europe, the Showcase Europe home page is now on the Internet at http://www.sce.doc.gov.