OSLO (Reuters) – The Norwegian mainland economy grew last year by 4.2%, its quickest pace since 2007 as the country rebounded from a pandemic-driven slump in activity, Statistics Norway (SSB) data showed on Wednesday.
The October-December quarter saw growth of 1.4% compared with the July-September period, SSB said, beating expectations of 1.2% in a Reuters poll of analysts.
Mainland GDP, which excludes the often volatile impact from Norway’s oil and gas production, is the most commonly watched measure of how the economy is performing.
In 2020, it contracted by 2.3% in what was estimated to be the weakest development in 75 years as strict COVID-19 lockdown measures hampered business activity.
“In April of 2021, the gradual reopening of society began, and activity in the mainland economy grew each month from April to November,” SSB economist Paal Sletten said in a statement.
(Reporting by Terje Solsvik; editing by Jason Neely and Andrew Heavens)
