It has been in many respects a particularly testing time, but we have I believe come through it all quite successfully and are now well placed to continue moving ahead. It will require sustained commitment from all of us - but the people of Northern Ireland have never been lacking in commitment! I wish you every possible success. 3  BIS Review 7/2000
Chart: Productivity growth in advanced economies Productivity growth has been declining in advanced economies since the beginning of the 2000s. The willingness to invest has been low since the financial crisis. To what extent this is related to the economic downturn remains to be seen. Better times may eventually entice investors, but it is also possible that the substantial changes in the global economy have had a more lasting effect on the willingness to invest and the growth capacity of western economies. Chart: Real wages in mainland Norway, the US and Germany A demanding restructuring process is underway in the traditional industrialised countries. In the US and Germany, real wages have barely risen since the turn of the millennium. Income inequality has deepened. This may in part be related to the global change in the price of labour. In other countries, particularly in Europe, economic restructuring is throwing a large number of people into unemployment. Over 26 million people are now unemployed in the EU today, almost 10 million more than in 2007. Low growth, high unemployment and high debt levels are not a good combination. Even though there are signs of a moderate revival of activity abroad, growth may remain low for a protracted period. Chart: Real wages and productivity for mainland Norway Real wage growth in Norway has diverged substantially from that observed in Germany and the US. This is attributable to the sharp price rise for Norwegian goods in recent years. Norway’s terms of trade have improved.