Norway’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 4.5% in August 2026, up from an eighteen-month low of 4.2% in July. The number of unemployed increased to 138 thousand from 128 thousand in the previous month. Youth unemployment, covering those aged 15 to 24, climbed to 13.6% from 12.0%.
At the same time, the employment rate slipped to 69.8% in August from 70.2% in July, as the number of employed declined to 2.926 million from 2.943 million. The labor force participation rate edged down to 73.1% from 73.3%, with the size of the labor force shrinking by 7 thousand to 3.064 million.
However, total man-weeks worked, adjusted to a 37.5-hour workweek, increased to 2.232 million from 2.199 million in the previous period. Compared with August of the prior year, the unemployment rate was 0.4 percentage point higher, at 4.9%.
