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OSLO (Reuters) - Norwegians rushed out to stock up on beer on Friday after authorities ruled it was too cheap following an unprecedented price war in a nation used to some of the most expensive alcohol on earth.
The price-cutting in Norway, whose sky-high alcohol taxes aim to curb drinking, has more than halved beer prices to 6.5 crowns ($1) for a 0.33 liter bottle in recent weeks.
The price is lower than the 6.7 crowns tax, meaning retailers are selling at a loss.
"The current price on beer is in breach of the alcohol law," Bjorn-Inge Larsen, director of the health directory, told a news conference, ordering retailers to boost prices or be stripped of their licenses to sell alcohol.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=573&ncid=573&e=4&u=/nm/20040426/od_nm/food_norway_beer_dcHe said he expected retailers to comply soon by lifting prices. The ruling triggered a flood of beer buying.