Thursday, May 22, 2025

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Sweden’s unemployment rate continues to rise

Published 18 December 2023
– By Editorial Staff
The Arbetsförmedlingen offices in Malmö.

At the end of November, there were approximately 338,686 people registered with the Swedish Public Employment Service. This represents an official unemployment rate of 6.5%.

The number of unemployed has been gradually increasing each month since May, when 319,000 people were registered with the Employment Service.

In November, 35,518 people registered as job seekers. Among young people aged 18-24, about 8.1 percent were registered as unemployed in November, which is a total of 40,869 people, according to Sweden’s Public Employment Service Arbetsförmedlingen. This is an increase of about 3,000 people compared to the same month last year.

137,663 of the registered unemployed have been out of work for 12 months or more, which is about 11,000 fewer than in November last year. At the same time, 168,936 people were openly unemployed, i.e. without a job, actively seeking a job and immediately available for work. In addition, 169,750 people were participating in some form of activity support program.

7,653 people were dismissed in November and 25,838 people found a new job.

The report is based on register data from the Swedish Public Employment Service, including registered unemployed and newly registered vacancies. Unless otherwise stated, the statistics refer to the age group 16-65.

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Fuel prices in Sweden set to climb regardless of political outcome

Published 20 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
As the EU has also decided what the minimum tax level on petrol and diesel should be, Swedish politicians do not currently have the option of lowering taxes at will.

Swedes can expect gasoline and diesel prices to rise significantly from 2027, regardless of the political constellation in Sweden.

The reason is the EU’s new emissions trading system ETS 2, which forces fuel companies to pay for carbon dioxide emissions – a cost that directly affects consumers.

Regardless of the outcome of the 2026 election, Swedish motorists will face higher fuel prices. Behind the increase is the EU’s ETS 2 emissions trading system, which has already been adopted by the Swedish Parliament. The system, which comes into force in 2027, requires companies that sell fossil fuels to purchase emission allowances for every ton of carbon dioxide they emit. The cost is expected to be around SEK 2.50 (€0.23) extra per liter based on today’s prices for emission allowances.

Emissions allowances are already being traded on the pre-market, where the price in May was 74 euros per ton of carbon dioxide. According to John Hassler, professor of economics and former government climate advisor, this is a realistic forecast for the future:

– This is probably the best guess of what these emission allowances will cost in the future, he told state television SVT.

EU does not allow tax cuts

Sweden stands out in European comparisons as one of the countries where fuel prices are currently lowest, partly as a result of the government’s tax cuts on fuel.

However, the EU has the final say here too, and according to John Hassler, Sweden is already close to the lowest tax level allowed by Brussels for gasoline and diesel, which will make future price adjustments difficult when the new emissions trading system, ETS 2, is introduced.

– We cannot compensate for this by lowering taxes on gasoline and diesel, maybe by 0.5 SEK, but no more than that, he says.

Hundreds of millions to the treasury

At the same time, ETS 2 will generate significant revenue for the government estimated at €915 million annually as the EU distributes the revenue from emission allowances to member states. Hassler believes that the money should be used to mitigate the effects on Swedish households.

There is a good signal value in using this money for, for example, a climate bonus for Swedish households. One could also imagine this money going to people in rural areas or other places where it is difficult to find alternatives to cars.

Green Party spokesperson Amanda Lind has previously stated that the opposition is planning fuel price increases to reduce emissions. However, analysts believe that price increases will happen regardless of which party is in power in Sweden, as this has largely become an EU issue with limited national influence.

The EU Emissions Trading Scheme ETS 2 is an expansion of the previous emissions trading scheme to include the transport and construction sectors. The aim is said to be to push down the use of fossil fuels by making them more expensive. From 2027, fuel suppliers will have to buy allowances for their emissions, a cost that will be directly passed on to the end consumer.

Swedish state secretary bought Saab shares day before Hungary Gripen deal announcement

The corruption in Sweden

Published 14 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Many defend Janse on the grounds that the sums involved are relatively small - but experts say that doesn't matter.

The day before it was announced that Hungary would purchase four Jas 39 Gripen aircraft from Sweden – a deal worth around SEK 2 billion (€180 million) – State Secretary Diana Janse (M) bought shares in Saab, the company that manufactures the aircraft.

Although the sums involved are relatively small, experts believe that this action is deeply inappropriate and risks damaging public confidence in the government.

Hungary was the last country to approve Sweden’s heavily criticized NATO application, and an agreement was also reached between the countries that included a deal on the sale of Swedish fighter jets.

Saab’s shares also rose sharply when the deal became known – something that benefited State Secretary Diana Janse, who had bought shares in the arms manufacturer for just under SEK 10,000 (€900) the day before the announcement.

She bought several shares that day and did not give any special consideration to the timing, commented Trade Minister Benjamin Dousas (M) press secretary to the tabloid Aftonbladet, which first reported the share purchase.

At the time, Janse was working for the then Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Johan Forssell, and today she holds the same position, but under Benjamin Dousa. She denies that she had any prior knowledge of the deal.

A state secretary participates in preparations within their area of responsibility. This means that not all state secretaries participate in or are informed about all preparations that come to the ministry. At the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the cabinet secretary is responsible for issues relating to NATO, said her press secretary.

“Should keep a safe distance”

However, not everyone is impressed by the explanations, and Claes Sandgren, senior professor of law at Stockholm University and former chairman of the Swedish Anti-Corruption Institute, believes that the action is directly damaging to public trust.

– Considering that she was State Secretary with political responsibility for trade issues at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and that the agreement was coordinated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, her share purchase appears clearly inappropriate.

There is a ban on insider trading for anyone with insider information. They must keep a safe distance from anything that could be perceived as improper. According to the guidelines, such actions can damage confidence in the government, he continues.

It is often difficult to determine exactly who had insider information and who did not, especially since those accused almost always deny such allegations. However, Sandgren believes that similar allegations of corruption can easily be avoided and that neither politicians nor state secretaries should manage their own share purchases.

– Given her central position, she should, like ministers, not engage in share trading herself but place her holdings in an independent custody account with a bank.

Recurring scandals

It is worth noting that this is not the first time that high-ranking representatives of the Moderate-led government have made questionable private share purchases in companies with which the Swedish state does business. In March, the newspaper reported how Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard (M) bought shares in the Swedish defense and IT company Mildef.

This purchase took place at the same time as the Swedish government was negotiating a multi-billion order from the arms industry – where Mildef was one of the companies that benefited financially from the deal.

As in the case of Diana Janse, many supporters defended the purchase on the grounds that the amounts involved were relatively small – around SEK 10,000 (€900)– arguing that this is pocket change for a minister.

However, according to Daniel Stattin, professor of civil law at Uppsala University, the size of the purchase is of little significance in this context: “The principle is really the same: make sure you don’t do business where independence or self-interest can be called into question”.

Danes boycott Coca-Cola

Published 30 April 2025
– By Editorial Staff
It seems that only US brands are currently seeing a decline in Denmark.

Danish consumers have begun to shun US brands in response to Donald Trump’s move to seize Greenland. Sales of Coca-Cola are falling – while domestic alternatives like Jolly Cola are surging.

As a result of Trump’s tough foreign policy, where he has expressed that he wants to seize the Danish territory Greenland, Danish consumers have started boycotting American goods. In particular, consumers have chosen to stop buying the American soft drink Cola-Cola, which has now become noticeable in sales.

Carlsberg, which manages the Danish sales of Coca-Cola, says that sales are “slightly down” in the country.

– There is a level of consumer boycott around the US brands, and it’s the only market where we’re seeing that to a large extent, chief executive Jacob Aarup-Andersen told Financial Times.

Meanwhile, local Danish brands like Jolly Cola are instead soaring, with grocery chain Rema, among others, saying sales of the brand had increased 13-fold in March compared to the same month last year.

“Feel disrespected”

US Vice President JD Vance has accused Denmark of not being a “good ally” for not accepting the idea of the US taking control of Greenland. This is despite Danish forces fighting alongside US troops in Afghanistan and elsewhere.

The Danes are angry. They remember those Danish soldiers’ bodies coming home, and now they feel disrespected. You can see why calls for a boycott are popular, a Danish official told the Financial Times last month.

Several consumers in Mexico have also chosen to boycott the brand, with volumes reportedly down 5.4% in the country in the last quarter.

Bank CEO’s explanation for distrust in banks: “Anti-Semitism”

The crisis of confidence in banks

Published 25 April 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Przemek Gdański – CEO of BNP Paribas Bank Polska.

It is not only in Sweden that banks are attracting increasing public contempt. In Poland, a majority of the population now says it has little confidence in the national banking system, a phenomenon that a major bank executive attributes to “anti-Semitic” stereotypes.

Przemek Gdański, CEO of BNP Paribas Bank Polska, has sparked debate in Poland after pointing to anti-Semitism as the root cause of the country’s widespread distrust of banks.

– In my opinion, the antipathy to banks is rooted in anti-Semitism. Historically, money lending, in some periods called usury, was done by Jews, Gdański said in an interview with the newspaper Puls Biznesu.

He also refers to a “lack of basic understanding” of how the banking system works, linking this to negative associations with mortgage payments, interest rates, and lending.

The statement has sparked criticism

The statement has triggered strong reactions in several media outlets, including the liberal newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza, which describes it as a “storm of criticism” against representatives of the banking sector for sweeping use of the term anti-Semitism as an explanation for institutional criticism.

The background to Gdański’s reasoning is the historical link between the Jewish diaspora and financial activities. Industry representatives warn that explanations based on “historical prejudices” risk overshadowing more concrete causes, such as fees, interest rates, and a perceived lack of transparency.

Previous opinion polls in Poland have indicated relatively high levels of trust in the banking sector.

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