Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson (The Moderate Party) has now presented all the proposals in the spring budget. Of the content, it is only the proposal for increased rot deduction that can affect households' economy in the short term, notes Shoka Åhrman.
The rot deduction is a wallet issue. But not really for everyone, since it is often used by those with higher incomes.
She receives support from Américo Fernández, private economist at SEB, who also points out that the proposal is not primarily intended as a wallet measure.
It's more about getting the construction sector going, he says.
Not Unusual
That there are few wallet measures in the spring budget is not unusual, according to Åhrman.
Spring changes usually affect the economy on a broader scale. It's not that common with concrete private economic changes, she says and continues:
On the other hand, the previous decisions on reduced tax on work and pension remain.
Another previous wallet decision is the temporary housing allowance for families with children. However, it will be removed from June this year.
It can mean a lot for some households since many have it tough with increased rents and price increases on basic goods, says Åhrman.
In order for the government to take decisive action when it comes to wallet measures, the economy needs to be worse than it is now, says Américo Fernández.
There is certainly economic uncertainty, not least considering the recent stock market turmoil. But so far, it has not been reflected in worse economic figures for Sweden. It may well become so in the future, but then the wallet measures will come forward, not now.
"More Targeted"
At the same time, he believes that there are measures that the government could have proposed in the spring budget to reach those most in need.
For example, a maintenance support for single parents. It is a reform that is relatively inexpensive for the government to implement. Moreover, it is more targeted than, for example, child benefits that go to all families.
Just extra child benefits were proposed by the government in the spring budget, but it was voted down by the Sweden Democrats, according to sources at SVT.
Based on the proposals in the spring budget, Shoka Åhrman believes that it is rather monetary policy, with a possible interest rate cut, that will affect households' economy in the near future.
