The high level of investment and activity in the oil and gas industry, coupled with the general boom, continues to generate strong growth impulses to the region. Growth is broad-based and there are good prospects of continued growth in the next few months. BIS Review 34/2007  3  A good half of the enterprises report difficulties in accommodating demand growth. This is a little lower than in the previous round. Capacity remains tight in manufacturing supplying the petroleum industry, building and construction and business services. The investment level is expected to rise in all industries. Profitability varies somewhat between sectors. It is solid in the supplier and export industries, retail trade and services, and stable in building and construction and manufacturing supplying the domestic market. Employment has risen in all industries in Hordaland and Rogaland over the past three months. Employment has increased over several years in the business sector. In recent months, employment growth in the public sector has also picked up. Unemployment in the region is now a little lower than 2 per cent, which is lower than the average for Norway as a whole. Unemployment began to fall earlier in this region than in the country as a whole. Demand for labour is expected to increase in manufacturing and services in the next three months. In other industries, employment is expected to be relatively stable. The tight labour market is reflected in continued high wage growth. Capacity utilisation in the Norwegian economy is expected to remain high through 2007.
Complementary steps could include creating pan-European venture capital funds and leveraging on the development of FinTechs, while maintaining a high level of consumer protection and efficient conduct of business rules in a digital environment. ** Let me conclude with a general remark. After Brexit and Mr. Trump’s election, many expected a euro area crisis. So far, exactly the opposite has happened: European growth is accelerating, at close to the pace of US growth. The French election gave a fresh political impetus to stability and reforms; public support for Europe has significantly increased: up 18 percentage points in France from last year (56% in spring 2017) according to a recent survey by the Pew Research Center; and the same trend can be observed in a number of countries. Most importantly, we in the EU-27 should not devote all our energy to Brexit, at the expense of investing in our own future. In this regard, it is the right time to move up a gear. To boost European growth, financial levers are of the essence, but economic levers play a role too. This is the reason why I often speak of Europe’s “growth triangle”. In my view, Europe needs to activate three levers: the Financing Union for Investment and Innovation that I have just described, but also implement national structural reforms on the one hand and a better euro area policy mix on the other. National structural reforms are a prerequisite for each country to unleash our collective growth  Page 5 sur 5  potential.