Despite skyrocketing fuel prices in the wake of the Iran war, Swedish inflation halved in April. The reduced VAT on food weighed more heavily. "I think this was a big surprise," says Robert Bergqvist, senior economist at SEB.
Business"Aren't you afraid of being alone when you're old?" is a question I get asked. "But I'm definitely not," says Zanna Wiede, who is childless. Fewer children are being born in Sweden, a trend the government wants to reverse. Mean comments and prejudice are also a daily reality for many who choose not to have children, according to researchers who believe that society must be prepared for a new era.
Swedish politicsThe Swedish economy grew 1.9 percent in March from the previous month, according to what Statistics Sweden calls a GDP indicator.
Business"Aren't you afraid of being alone when you're old?" is a question I'm often asked. But I'm definitely not, says Zanna Wiede, who is childless. Fewer children are being born in Sweden, a trend the government wants to reverse. Mean comments and prejudice are also an everyday reality for many who choose not to have children, according to researchers who believe that society must be prepared for a new era.
Swedish politicsHeavily leveraged households, tenant-owner associations and companies can still hope that the key interest rate will be left unchanged this year. That is the view of both the state mortgage bank SBAB and SEB, the major bank in the Wallenberg sphere. However, pricing in the fixed-income market points to an interest rate increase.
BusinessStatistics Sweden's Labour Force Survey (AKU) has been affected by technical glitches, and the unemployment figure of 9.7 percent for March is therefore uncertain. "You shouldn't make too much of it," says Louise Stener of Statistics Sweden.
TechnologyInflation, according to the CPIF measure, fell to 1.6 percent in March, Statistics Sweden (SCB) said.
BusinessLower fuel taxes and a new electricity subsidy will be felt in households' budgets. But the measures in the spring budget will not reach everyone, says Stefan Westerberg, private economist at Länsförsäkringar. The typical two-child family is at the center, he says.
BusinessMore in Statistiska centralbyrån
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