Norway’s economic star begins to lose its shine

A boiler towers over a fjord on Norway’s south coast from a 116-year-old pulp mill, the largest employer in the town of Tofte.

The 300 jobs may be gone by September, the deadline set by the loss-making plant’s Swedish owner to find a buyer or close, victim of high wage costs, the strong Norwegian currency and the debt crisis that has hurt its local European markets.

Norway, the world’s seventh largest oil exporter, is the envy of western Europe, beating everyone with 3.4 per cent growth last year and filling its coffers from oil while others were pulled under by debt.

via Business feed http://www.scmp.com/business/economy/article/1270240/norways-economic-star-begins-lose-its-shine