Economy of the Faroe Islands and holding below 3% since 2006, one of the lowest rates in Europe. Since 2000, new information technology and business projects have been fostered in the Faroe Islands to attract new investment. The result from these projects is not yet known but is hoped to bring a better market economy to the Faroe Islands. In 2014 the Faroe Islands had a trade surplus of 401 million DKK, a figure that rose to 1.43 billion DKK in 2016. As of 2016, the Faroe Islands mainly imported goods from Denmark (2,467 million DKK), Germany (877 million DKK), and Norway (610 DKK). The
History of the Faroe Islands Harald Hårfagre, and that other Norse were driven to the Faroe Islands due to his chaotic rule. This mass migration to the Faroe Islands shows a prior knowledge of the Viking settlements' locations, furthering the claim of Grímur Kamban's settlement much earlier. While Kamban is recognized as the first Viking settler of the Faroe Islands, his surname is of Gaelic origin. Writings from the Papar, an order of Irish monks, show that they left the Faroe Islands due to ongoing Viking raids. The name of the islands is first recorded on the Hereford "mappa mundi" (1280), where they are labelled