Denmark's central bank sees 4% GDP growth in 2026, boosted by pharmaceutical industry (updated)

AP Moeller - Maersk A/S

23/09/2026 07:42

Adds detail from statement and background in paragraphs 2-6
COPENHAGEN, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Denmark's central bank raised its GDP forecast for this year to 4% growth and its 2027 forecast to 2.3% growth from a previous prediction of 1.8% for both.
"Growth has been driven primarily by an extraordinary increase in the pharmaceutical industry’s output abroad in the first half of the year," Nationalbanken said in a statement.
Novo Nordisk NOVOb.CO, the maker of blockbuster drug Wegovy, has been a driver for Denmark's economy, although its shares have fallen sharply since hitting a peak in 2024.
The Danish government in August attributed a higher-than-expected growth in the Danish economy to the launch of Novo's weight-loss Wegovy pill in the United States at the beginning of this year.
The Danish economy has so far defied global turmoil, Governor Christian Kettel Thomsen said in the statement.
"We expect strong GDP growth this year, but with no signs of increased wage or price pressure. This is due to the fact that a large part of the growth comes from production abroad, which only draws on Danish labour and capital to a limited extent," he said.
Denmark is also home to global companies like shipping group Maersk, brewer Carlsberg, toymaker Lego and wind turbine maker Vestas.

 (Reporting by Soren Jeppesen and Stine Jacobsen, editing by Terje Solsvik)
 ((soren.jeppesen@thomsonreuters.com; Mobile: +45 2332 5113))