Norway reports mixed results for oil and gas salaries

OSLO, Norway, Nov. 29 (UPI) -- Average salaries for those working in the Norwegian oil and gas sector showed gains from the previous quarter, but less than last year, government data show.

The government reported preliminary data that show salaries during the third quarter for those working in oil and gas extraction and mining was up a half percent from the previous quarter. That compares with a gain of 0.7 percent in average basic salaries during the same period last year.

Norway is one of Europe's leading suppliers of oil and natural gas. With energy prices far below peak levels in 2014, the government's statistics office said total revenue for the third quarter was down 5.1 percent to $33.1 billion.

Accounts for the third quarter show the government is running a deficit of around $2.3 billion and this is the second straight quarter this year the government has run in the red.

Weak economic growth in the latter half of 2016 for Norway has replaced an economic standstill, with gains in home-building and exports expected to provide a lift through early 2017. The country's central bank has said that profitability in the banking sector was firm, though losses were coming from ties to oil-related sectors.

Total production of oil and natural gas liquids for Norway was down almost 10 percent, the Norwegian government said, though some of the decline was not market related.

Of sectors that did perform better than last year in terms of wage growth, the government reported a 2 percent increase in wages in the third quarter for information and communication jobs, against 0.3 percent growth last year. Professional, scientific and technical activities went from a 0.1 percent decline last year to a 1.8 percent growth for average basic salaries in the third quarter.