Norway Sees Defense Spending Driving Long-Term Fiscal Needs
- Finance Ministry published white paper on economic outlook
- Oil-rich country has among the most robust public finances
A Norwegian soldier in Alta, above the Arctic Circle in Norway.
Photographer: Jonathan Nackstrandf/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Norway’s growing defense spending will be the main driver of the projected widening in budget shortfall in the coming years, ahead of population aging, according to the country’s Finance Ministry.
Up to 2036, the increased outlays on defense are estimated to be as high as the higher spending on national insurance and health, care and education services combined, the finance ministry in Oslo said Friday in a white paper on the nation’s long-term economic perspectives. While the costs stemming from population aging will be “moderate” in coming years, they will increase beyond the 2030s, it said.