The krone (ˈkrûːnə, abbreviation: kr (also NKr for distinction); code: NOK), plural kroner, is the currency of the Kingdom of Norway (including overseas territories and dependencies). It was traditionally known as the Norwegian crown in English, however this has fallen out of common usage. It is nominally subdivided into 100 øre, although the last coins denominated in øre were withdrawn in 2012.
The krone was the thirteenth-most-traded currency in the world by value in April 2010, down three positions from 2007.
The Norwegian krone is also informally accepted in many shops in Sweden and Finland that are close to the Norwegian border, and also in some shops in the Danish ferry ports of Hirtshals and Frederikshavn. Norwegians spent 14.1 billion NOK on border shopping in 2015 compared to 10.5 billion NOK spent in 2010. Border shopping is a fairly common practice amongst Norwegians, though it is seldom done on impulse. Money is spent mainly on food articles, alcohol, and tobacco, in that order, usually in bulk or large quantities. This is due to considerably higher taxes and fees on tobacco and alcohol purchased domestically in Norway.
The krone was introduced in 1875, replacing the Norwegian speciedaler/spesidaler at a rate of 4 kroner = 1 speciedaler. In doing so, Norway joined the Scandinavian Monetary Union, which had been established in 1873. The Scandinavian currencies were mutually exchangeable at par until 1914 with the suspension of the gold standard due to World War I. After this date, the currencies of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden ceased to be mutually equivalent to each other.
Within the Scandinavian Monetary Union, the krone was on a gold standard of 2,480 kroner = 1 kilogram of pure gold (1 krone = 403.226 milligrams of gold). The gold standard was suspended from 1914 to 1916 and from 1920 to 1928, and in 1931 it was permanently suspended. In 1933 the krone was pegged to the pound sterling at 1 pound = 19.9 kroner, and in 1939 the krone was pegged to the U.S. dollar at $1 = 4.4 kroner.