A total of 119,000 people in Norway are now officially unemployed, pushing the country’s unemployment rate up to 4 percent last month. That’s still considered relatively low, though, and more Ukrainian refugees have found work. The latest numbers from state statistics bureau SSB (Statistics Norway) show unemployment up by half-a-percentage point from this time last […] The post Unemployment rises but more Ukrainians hired appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

All the usual hype and hugs were in place when Guide Michelin doled out its latest round of stars to Norwegian restaurants this week. Norway now has two restaurants with three Michelin stars, one with two stars and 17 with one, and they’re not all in the country’s biggest cities. Oslo remains the city with […] The post More Michelin stars shine over Norway appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

Norway’s newest national park just officially opened east of Oslo and now the Greens Party is already proposing another one, in Rogaland. It’s the only county in Norway that now lacks a national park. “That’s sad,” Greens leader Arild Hermstad told news bureau NTB. “There’s a lot of beautiful and important nature in Rogaland that […] The post Greens Party urges new national park appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

After months of unusual weakness, Norway’s krone has strengthened against most all major currencies, especially the US dollar. It dipped again on Tuesday, but exchange rates were a bit more favourable for Norwegians on the verge of the summer travel season. Holiday trips to the US and all countries using the euro have still become […] The post Norway’s currency gets a bit stronger appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

The Norwegian capital was recovering on Tuesday after sudden, torrential rain set off flash floods on Monday. The extreme weather, accompanied by lots of lightning and thunder, also knocked out power to thousands of homes and businesses. Repairs were rapidly underway, though, especially on Parkveien in Oslo’s Frogner-Vika district. It’s an important street for cross-town […] The post Southern Norway recovering from some extreme weather appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

Norway’s northern border to Russia will no longer offer a gateway for Russians keen on entering not just Norway but the entire European economic area. The Norwegian government’s latest tightening of border control has won widespread support, except from Russian officials who claim it’s discriminatory. As of May 29, Norwegian border police will turn back […] The post Tighter border control wins support appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

Norway’s inflation rate dipped to 3.6 percent last month, but few economists think that’s enough of a decline to prompt a reduction in Norwegian interest rates. Core inflation, which measures price hikes excluding energy rates and government-imposed fees, remained at 4.4 percent. “Even though inflation fell for the fourth month in a row, the prices […] The post Lower inflation unlikely to lower interest rates appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

More than 90 percent of immigrants eligible for citizenship in Norway passed the country’s test last year that measures their knowledge of Norwegian life and society.  “We can only congratulate them,” said government minister Tonje Brenna, in charge of education and inclusion. News bureau NTB reported that of the 5,333 who took the test, fully […] The post Vast majority pass citizenship test appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

Norway’s dominant telecoms firm Telenor set up a crisis team during the long holiday weekend, after hundreds of thousands of customers suddenly were knocked offline and couldn’t communicate on Saturday. Telenor officials now claim the problems have been fixed and they don’t think hacking was behind them. “The reason for the instability that some customers […] The post ‘No signs of hacking’ after Telenor’s network crashed appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more

TRONDHEIM: Warm temperatures may have relaxed dress codes and some traditions on Friday, when thermometers set quite a few records on Norway’s Constitution Day holiday. It was especially warm in the central region of Trøndelag, where 17th of May celebrations in the region’s biggest city seemed a lot more casual than those in Bergen, Oslo […] The post 17th of May the Trøndelag way appeared first on Norway's News in English — www.newsinenglish.no ..read more