OSLO, Nov 30 (Reuters) – Norway’s central bank said on Tuesday it would maintain a policy of not buying Norwegian kroner on behalf of the country’s government in December.

Norges Bank announced on November 18 that it would reduce its purchases to zero for the latter part of November, down from 700 million Norwegian kroner ($77.2 million) a day earlier in the month, instantly weakening the krone.

The central bank normally purchases foreign currency on behalf of the government on a daily basis to make funds available for the government’s fiscal budget, exchanging the currencies derived from its oil and gas and sovereign wealth fund for Norwegian kroner.

However, the recent spike in oil and gas prices has resulted in a huge direct influx of cash into Norway, ensuring government needs are met.

He did not say whether there were any implications for purchases beyond December.

Norway is Western Europe’s largest oil and gas producer with daily production of around 4 million barrels of oil equivalent.

($1 = 9.0641 Norwegian kroner)

Reporting by Terje Solsvik, editing by Gwladys Fouché

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