Norwegian banks are well-equipped if faced with a new downturn and the economic recovery has improved the outlook for financial stability, but risks remain, the central bank said in an annual report on Tuesday, Reuters reported. "The stress test in this report shows that the largest Norwegian banks can weather a sharp downturn without having to tighten lending substantially," Deputy Governor Ida Wolden Bache said in a statement.
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Norway’s new center-left Cabinet has taken office after the incoming prime minister presented a center-left minority government Thursday, a day after a deadly bow-and-arrow attack in a small town, the Associated Press reported. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, the leader of Norway’s center-left Labor Party, stood outside the royal palace with his 19-member team — 10 women and nine men — that includes the leader of the euroskeptic Center Party, Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, who becomes finance minister.
Low-cost carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle, which exited bankruptcy protection in May, reported on Tuesday an improvement in its first-half earnings as the beleaguered travel sector picks up speed amid rising vaccinations, the Times of Malta reported. In the first six months of the year, Norwegian posted a net profit of 1.6 billion kroner (€155 million) thanks to financial restructuring, compared to a loss of 5.4 billion kroner in the first half of 2020.
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The Norwegian government has proposed overhauling the taxation system for the petroleum industry, which has been in place since 2005, cutting reimbursements for exploration costs, Finance Minister Jan Tore Sanner said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. "The changes mean that the tax conditions will be tighter and have a more neutral effect on investments. At the same time, we are making sure that companies have predictable framework conditions," Sanner told a news conference.
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Offshore drilling rig contractors Transocean Ltd and Dolphin Drilling have made a new offer to buy the assets of stricken rival Seadrill Ltd, Dolphin's chief executive said on Friday. Oslo-listed Seadrill, founded by Norwegian-born tycoon John Fredriksen, is seeking to emerge from U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings under an alternative financial plan filed in court last month. Seadrill's Oslo-listed shares traded 5.5% up by 1425 GMT, after jumping about 30% earlier on Friday.
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Noble Corp. and a consortium that includes Transocean Ltd. and Dolphin Drilling are competing to acquire the assets of Seadrill Ltd., the bankrupt offshore oil driller controlled by Norwegian-born tycoon John Fredriksen, Reuters reported. Seadrill is trying to emerge from its second U.S. chapter 11 bankruptcy in four years: Like many in the industry, it expanded its drilling rigs too aggressively in the mid-2010s to withstand a subsequent plunge in energy prices and rig hire rates.
Budget carrier Norwegian Air showed poor judgement when it paid bonuses to top management just weeks after emerging from government-backed bankruptcy proceedings, Norway’s industry minister said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Having shed thousands of jobs during the pandemic and forced creditors to swap billions of dollars in debt for stock in the slimmed-down airline, Norwegian completed a court-ordered financial restructuring in late May.
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Norwegian Air fired Chief Executive Jacob Schram who led the budget carrier through restructuring and said that it was promoting Chief Financial Officer Geir Karlsen to the top job with immediate effect, Reuters reported. The board voted on June 20 to end Schram's 18-month tenure but the airline said he would support the carrier on a full-time basis during his notice period up to March 31. "The board's decision to fire me came as a big surprise," Schram told Reuters. His replacement, Karlsen, has been chief financial officer since 2018.
Britain has clinched post-Brexit trade agreements with Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein as it seeks to forge new global trading relationships after leaving the European Union, Reuters reported. The three nations, which are part of the European Economic Area allowing them access to the single market, have relied on temporary trade arrangements with Britain since the end of a Brexit transition period on Dec. 31.
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Norwegian Air emerged from six months of bankruptcy protection on Wednesday with a smaller fleet and its debt almost wiped out but also facing stronger competition and lingering uncertainty wrought by the pandemic, Reuters reported. The airline said on Friday that it had raised 6 billion Norwegian crowns ($721 million) in fresh capital, as planned, more than enough to meet the minimum requirement set by bankruptcy courts in Dublin and Oslo.
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