According to the Matpriskollen survey, Swedish food prices rose by 0.1 percent in March. The products that have increased in price the most are dairy products and personal care products.
Comparing about 43,000 products, 21 percent have increased in price, 19 percent have become cheaper and the rest have remained unchanged. The categories that have seen the biggest price drops are vegetables at 1.9% and fruits and berries at 3.9%. The items that have increased the most are dairy products at 0.3 percent and personal care products at 0.4 percent.
− This is positive for the Swedish people after a few months of price increases,says Ulf Mazur, CEO and founder of food price app Matpriskollen, and continues:
− This is partly due to the warm and favorable weather in the Mediterranean countries, so the harvests of tomatoes, cucumbers and oranges, for example, have been very good, which has put pressure on prices.
However, since January 2022, food prices in general have risen by around 23% – a historically high figure. In 2024, prices increased slightly but remained more stable compared to 2022. In February, prices rose by an average of 0.5%.
At the beginning of the year, Swedish food chain giant ICA announced that it would allocate SEK 1 billion to reduce the prices of thousands of products, but according to Mazur, this has not had a significant impact on prices. When asked, most Swedes say that Willys and Lidl are the chains with the lowest prices.
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Chinese companies are showing interest in buying up Volkswagen’s factories in Germany, a strategic move that could potentially transform the automotive industry in Europe. The investments would strengthen China’s presence in European vehicle production, but also raise concerns about the future of the industry and political reactions.
Volkswagen plans to close its factories in Dresden and Osnabrück by 2027 – as part of the company’s fight to cut costs and face stiffening competition from Chinese electric car makers.
Volkswagen might consider selling the Osnabrück factory to a Chinese buyer, according to a person familiar with the company’s deliberations who spoke to Reuters.
However, a Volkswagen spokesperson emphasizes that “We are committed to finding a continued use for the site. The goal must be a viable solution that takes into account the interests of the company and employees”.
Could bypass car tariffs
Chinese investment in Germany has in the past included sectors such as telecommunications and robotics, but establishment in traditional car manufacturing has so far failed to materialize.
The Chinese are interested in car manufacturing in Europe in general, potentially avoiding EU tariffs on imported electric cars and strengthening their market presence, as several manufacturers have already done. For example, BYD is building plants in Hungary and Turkey, while Chery plans to start manufacturing at a former Nissan plant in Spain. Leapmotor has also considered using a factory in Germany for its production.
Reuters also reports that a source close to the Chinese government said that Chinese companies are actively exploring opportunities to buy factories that Volkswagen plans to close.
Volkswagen’s crown jewel: Wolfsburg Volkswagen Plant. Photo: High Contrast/CC BY 2.0
A spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry urged Germany to welcome Chinese investment.
– China has introduced a series of opening-up measures to create new business opportunities for foreign companies … It is hoped that the German side will also uphold an open mind, (and) provide a fair, just and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese firms to invest.
Opposition from German trade unions
However, a sale of Volkswagen’s plants to Chinese operators could face opposition from German trade unions, which have significant influence and may demand guarantees on jobs and factory locations.
Moreover, relations between Germany and China have become increasingly strained in recent years and, in light of the upcoming German elections, the decision-making process on Chinese investment currently appears somewhat uncertain.
However, selling factories to Chinese companies could prove to be financially beneficial for Volkswagen. According to an anonymous source, a sale could generate revenues of between €100 million and €300 million per plant.
At the same time, it also carries the risk of German car brands losing their historical edge and competitiveness in Germany, which is the largest national car market in Europe.
Volkswagen was founded in 1937 in Germany on the initiative of then Chancellor Adolf Hitler, as part of a drive for a people's car for all. After World War II, the company recovered to become a global automotive player, known for iconic models such as the Volkswagen Type 1 (the "Beetle"). Today, Volkswagen is one of the world's largest car manufacturers, owning brands such as Audi, Porsche and Skoda.
Despite EU sanctions and stated ambitions to sharply reduce imports of Russian fossil fuels, Europe still imported record amounts of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia in 2024.
According to experts, there is a logical reason for the increase – Russian gas is simply much cheaper than its competitors.
Data from Rystad Energy shows that 17.8 million tons of Russian LNG were delivered to European ports last year, an increase of over 2 million tons compared to the previous year.
Despite a significant drop in piped gas imports from Russia due to the conflict in Ukraine and the terrorist attack on the Nord Stream pipelines in September 2022, the EU continued to purchase record amounts of the country’s LNG. This has been possible as the chilled fuel has been only partially covered by the sanctions imposed by Union member states.
The energy analyst firm released the data shortly after Ukraine halted the transit of Russian gas through its territory to the EU. Kiev opted to scrap a five-year transit agreement with Russian energy giant Gazprom at the end of 2024, halting the flow of natural gas from Russia to Romania, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Italy and Moldova.
Russian LNG deliveries to the EU not only increased but reached “record levels”, according to Jan-Eric Fahnrich, gas analyst at Rystad Energy. He states that Russia surpassed Qatar as the bloc’s second-largest supplier of LNG in 2024, after the United States.
According to Fahnrich, the EU bought 49.5 billion cubic meters of Russian gas through pipelines last year, and another 24.2 billion cubic meters of LNG, some of which was re-exported to other countries.
“Fairly simple”
Data from the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (Crea) show slightly lower figures, but even these reflect an overall trend of sharply increasing Russian LNG exports. According to Crea, EU imports of Russian LNG increased by 14% year-on-year in 2024 to 17.5 million tons and were worth €7.32 billion.
– The reason for the rise is fairly simple. Russian LNG is offered at a discount to alternative suppliers. With no sanctions imposed on the commodity, companies are operating in their own self-interest and buying increasing quantities of gas from the cheapest supplier, explains Crea’s Russia analyst Vaibhav Raghunandan.
The latest estimates significantly outpace recent projections by Bloomberg, which earlier this week said LNG deliveries from Russia to the EU had risen to 15.5 million tons by 2024 compared to 2020, when the EU imported about 10.5 million tons of the fuel.
Food prices in Sweden have risen by 25% over the past three years, according to a new report from Matpriskollen, a Swedish consumer price tracking organization. In 2024, the most significant price increases were seen in chocolate, olive oil, coffee, and dairy products.
In 2024, food prices increased by 2.8%. If other grocery products are also included, the increase is 2.1%.
Overall price increases have reached 25% since January 2022, according to the report.
The increases vary between stores, and last year they were most noticeable at City Gross, Ica Kvantum, Hemköp and Ica Supermarket. At the same time, some stores are trying to compete by keeping prices lower.
– Maxi is chasing Willys for low prices and in many cases trying to match prices.The price difference on comparable items is around 4% between Willys and Maxi.Lidl, which also offers low prices, has the same price level on directly comparable items as Willys, says Ulf Mazur, CEO and founder of Matpriskollen in a press release.
36 000 products became more expensive
In 2024, the price of almost 36,000 products increased. The increase was particularly marked for cocoa, which has made chocolate on average 17% more expensive. Vinegar and oils also rose by 12%, with olive oil in particular recording a sharp price increase.
Coffee prices have reached their highest level since 1972, with an 18% increase over the year. Dairy products, meanwhile, have risen by 4.7%.
Organic goods rose by 3.6% over the year, according to Matpriskollen.
Russian companies have started using bitcoin and other digital currencies for international payments following the entry into force of legislative changes allowing such use to counter the effects of Western sanctions. This is confirmed by the country’s Finance Minister Anton Siluanov.
The extensive sanctions have made it more difficult for Russia to trade not only with Western countries, but also with key partners such as China and Turkey. This is because local banks today are often very cautious or negative about Russia-related transactions as they themselves do not want to face retaliation or investigations from Western regulators.
Earlier this year, Russia therefore allowed the use of cryptocurrencies in foreign trade and has taken several steps to make it legal to mine cryptocurrencies.
– As part of the experimental regime, it is possible to use bitcoins, which we had mined here in Russia, the finance minister explained to the Russia 24 television channel.
Putin believes in bitcoin
– Such transactions are already occurring. We believe they should be expanded and developed further. I am confident this will happen next year, he continued, adding that international payments in digital currencies are the future.
Earlier in December, President Vladimir Putin also accused the US government of undermining the role of the US dollar as a reserve currency by using it for political purposes – forcing many countries to seek other alternatives.
Pointing to bitcoin as one such example and saying that no one in the world can regulate or control the cryptocurrency, the president’s comments suggest that the Russian leader supports the idea of increasing the use of cryptocurrencies.
