Svein Gjedrem: The conduct of monetary policy Introductory statement by Mr Svein Gjedrem, Governor of Norges Bank (Central Bank of Norway), at the hearing before the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs of the Storting (Norwegian parliament), Oslo, 22 May 2008. Please note that the text below may differ slightly from the actual presentation. The statement is based on Norges Bank’s Annual Report for 2007, Monetary Policy Report 1/08 and the Executive Board’s assessments published after the monetary policy meeting on 23 April. *  *  *  I would like to thank the Chairman of the Committee and also thank the Committee for this opportunity to report on monetary policy in connection with the Storting’s deliberations on the Government’s Credit Report. My statement is based on the Bank’s Annual Report, but is also updated based on the Executive Board’s assessments for the period to the previous monetary policy meeting and new information received to date. I also refer to this year’s report from Norges Bank Watch, an independent group of experts that evaluates Norges Bank’s conduct of monetary policy. Monetary policy in Norway is oriented towards maintaining low and stable inflation. The target is annual consumer price inflation of close to 2.5 per cent over time. The inflation target provides employers and employees with an anchor for inflation expectations among businesses and households. Inflation stabilised early in the 1990s after falling from a high level in the previous decade.
This contributed to better provision of insurance services at competitive prices and coverage, thereby, achieving higher growth rates in the market. The number of insurance and reinsurance companies at the end of the third quarter of 2013 stood at 34 in addition to 180 insurance-related service companies to support insurance services. Gross written premiums stood at SAR 19.2 billion at the end of the third quarter of 2013, compared to SAR 15.7 billion in 2012, growing by 22.3 percent. The ratio of insurance written premiums to GDP stood at 0.69 percent up to the third quarter of 2013, indicating significant opportunities of growth for this sector in the coming years. SAMA attached great attention to insured persons’ rights. The Implementation Regulation of The Cooperative Insurance Companies Control Law obligates insurance companies to settle customers’ claims in a period not exceeding 15 days. SAMA supervises companies’ compliance with the provisions of this article on a continuous basis. Ladies and gentlemen, In the area of finance, SAMA has published the Implementing Regulations for the Finance Laws, and issued Implementing Regulations of the Financial Leasing Law in coordination with the Ministry of Justice. It has also issued the Implementing Regulations of the Finance Companies Control Law. In this context, SAMA applies the best internationally recognized practices, ensuring the soundness of the sector and its stability, fairness of its transactions, in addition to encouraging legitimate and fair competition between finance companies, taking appropriate means to develop the sector, working on Saudization of jobs, and raising efficiency of its employees.