Norway's centre-left coalition looked set to keep a thin majority in Parliament, exit polls and partial results from yesterday's general election showed, after steering the country through the global downturn.

An election-day poll for Norwegian television network TV2 showed the red-green coalition on course to win 86 seats in the 169-seat Parliament. A separate survey for NRK showed Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg's Labour-led Cabinet with 85 seats.

An official forecast based on 24 per cent of the votes showed the government with 86 seats, an election website said. Final results from 19 voting districts are expected today.

The apparent victory hands Mr Stoltenberg a chance to lead a third government this decade and paves the way for more big government policies and continued restraint in using the country's vast oil windfall to plug budget holes.

The centre-left has dug deep into Norway's oil fund to cushion the blow of the global recession. With unemployment at three per cent and economic growth expected to resume in 2010, many see the government as a safe pair of hands during the crisis.

Once the crisis fades, the leftists aim to curb the use of oil cash in stimulating the $420 billion economy.

The coalition - Mr Stoltenberg's Labour, the Socialist Left and Centre Party - opposes the tax cuts and privatisation proposals made by centre-right parties, arguing they would eat away spending on healthcare, education and care for the elderly.

This is the first government to be re-elected since 1993, three years before Norway set up an offshore fund to invest the country's oil-based wealth.

The fund, worth $80,000 per citizen, has tended to stoke expectations for quick improvements in public services, which in turn has led to a series of one-term governments.