The Kroner is the official currency of Norway. It is subdivided into 100 øre. The name translates into the English word crown.
Economy
Norway’s economy is well-developed, with heavy state ownership in planned parts of the economy. The economy has shown vigorous growth since the beginning of the industrial period.
Shipping has been a long-term support of the export sector, but its economic development has been stimulated by the profusion of natural resources, which include hydroelectric power, fisheries, petroleum exploration, and manufacture.
Agriculture and manufacturing have experienced decline, in contrast to the oil industries and other services. The public sector is one of the largest in the world in terms of the overall percentage of GDP.
Norway has both a very high standard of living and a strong welfare structure, unlike other European countries.
History
The Kroner was first introduced in 1875 to replace the Norwegian Speciedaler, at a fixed rate of 4 Kroner = 1 Speciedaler. This pushed Norway to join the Scandinavian Monetary Union, which was established in 1873.
The Scandinavian Monetary Union continued until 1914; after its suspension, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark decided to keep the names of their respective currencies.
In December 1992 the Norges Bank (the central bank of Norway) discarded the fixed exchange rate, due to heavy speculation against the Kroner. The restatement of the exchange rate led to a shortfall of approximately 2 billion Kroner for foreign coinage reserves of the Norwegian Central Bank.
