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Which currencies have benefitted the most from Norway’s weak krone?

The Norwegian krone has slumped against several major currencies in recent years. But which currency has seen the largest gains, and what can you get for your money compared to five years ago?

Published: 16 April 2024 14:48 CEST
Pictured is a bundle of different currencies.
Norway's krone has slumped against a number of other currencies. Pictured is a bundle of different currencies. Photo by Ibrahim Boran on Unsplash

Norway’s krone has endured a turbulent few years, hitting major lows in 2020 and then fluctuating and returning to similar levels this year and 2024.

The decline in the krone has been linked to several factors, and it looks like the weaker currency is now the new norm.

The real losers in this situation are those living in Norway and those paid in the Norwegian krone.

This is because they suffer something of a ‘double whammy’, whereby the weak krone makes it more expensive to travel, but the weak krone also drives up inflation due to imports becoming more expensive.

Still, the good news is that visitors to Norway, those who are paid in another currency, and people with savings pots abroad are better off.

READ ALSO: How the weak Norwegian krone will affect travel to and from Norway

For example, five years ago 1,000 kroner was equivalent to around 117 dollars, according to historical exchange rate calculators whereas these days 1,000 kroner trades for around 91 dollars.

Due to inflation, 1,000 kroner in 2019 is equivalent to 1,200 kroner in 2024, and 117 dollars is equivalent to 144 dollars. Today, 1,200 kroner trades for around 110 dollars.

When it comes to the euro, you can expect around 86 euros in exchange for 1,000 kroner at current rates.

Similarly, 1,000 kroner was equivalent to 104 euros in 2019. After inflation is accounted for, 104 euros in 2019 equals around 124 euros in 2024. Meanwhile, 1,200 kroner in April 2024 could be exchanged for 103 euros.

Five years ago, you could swap 1,000 kroner for just under 90 British pounds. These days 1,000 kroner only gets you 73 pounds. Inflation means that 90 pounds in 2019 equates to around 110 in today’s money.

When adjusting 1,000 kroner for inflation, 1,200 kroner is equivalent to 88 pounds in today’s money.

These examples highlight how, even after accounting for inflation, Norway’s kroner has weakened against several other currencies.

In 2019, 1,000 kroner was equivalent to 156 Canadian dollars. These days, 1,000 kroner trades for around 125 Canadian dollars.

Five years ago, 1,000 kroner was traded for 164 Australian dollars and 174 New Zealand dollars. In April 2024, 1,000 kroner could be exchanged for 141 Australian dollars and 154 New Zealand dollars.

Norway’s krone has also slipped against currencies in neighbouring countries. Five years ago, the Norwegian krone was more valuable than the Swedish krone. At the time, 1,000 Norwegian kroner could be exchanged for 1,089 Swedish krona.

Fast forward to this year, and 1,000 Norwegian kroner only gets you around 994 Swedish krona.

The Danish kroner has also strengthened against the krone. In 2019, 1,000 Norwegian kroner would get you 777 Danish kroner, compared to 641 Danish kroner today.

Below is a table comparing the amount 1,000 Norwegian kroner could be exchanged for

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ECONOMY

What lower inflation in Norway means for you 

Inflation in Norway continues to slow. However, the cost of living in the country isn’t slowing as quickly as economists expected. Here’s what that means to you. 

Published: 10 May 2024 11:44 CEST
What lower inflation in Norway means for you 

Inflation is slowing 

Norway’s Consumer Price Index, CPI, which measures changes in prices for household goods and services, has slowed yet again. 

Between April last year and the same month this year, prices in Norway rose by 3.6 percent. It marks the third time that price increases have been below four percent since the start of 2022. 

The figures, released by Norway’s national data agency Statistics Norway, mark the fourth month in a row where the 12 monthly inflation figure has been lower than the yearly figure from the month before. This means prices are rising less rapidly than before. 

“Price growth decreased for the fourth month in a row in April. Prices are still higher than they were at the same time last year for most goods and services, but they are generally rising more slowly than before,” Espen Kristiansen at Statistics Norway said. 

Food remains one of the biggest contributors to inflation 

The price of food and non-alcoholic beverages rose by 3.3 percent from March to April, according to Statistics Norway. 

Chocolate, soft drinks, coffee, and citrus foods saw the biggest price increases, which the national data agency called “unusual.” 

What wasn’t unusual, however, was the cost of food rising following Easter, when many supermarkets ran offers to compete for customers. 

“The rise must be seen in the context of the fact that large offer campaigns in connection with Easter dampened prices in March,” Kristiansen said. 

The figures for April show that food prices in Norway have increased by 6.8 percent compared to a year ago. 

The rising cost of food and drink in Norway could potentially outgrow wages this year, even if expected pay bumps will outpace forecasted inflation overall. 

Economists expected inflation to fall more 

Inflation hasn’t eased as much as some experts were expecting. Core inflation, which excludes energy prices and taxes, was measured at 4.4 percent year on year in April. This is above what economists surveyed by the newswire Reuters expected. 

Norges Bank, the country’s central bank, raised the policy rate to a 16-year high of 4.5 percent in December. The bank has said that inflation should generally be around two percent, so it has used interest rates to curb price increases. 

As inflation isn’t falling much quicker than expected, economists predict that the central bank may wait until December before slashing rates – which for consumers means that loan and mortgage repayments will remain high for the foreseeable future. 

“The fall in inflation has not been much greater than Norges Bank has thought. This, therefore, indicates that an interest rate cut may come in December instead of September,” Kjersti Haugland, chief economist at DNB Markets, told public broadcaster NRK. 

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