Sweden

Worrying resurgence of coronavirus infections in Sweden

Some areas of Sweden are seeing a worrying resurgence of coronavirus infections because many people seem to have set aside months of caution in favour of full-on social life once…

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Russian warships enter Swedish territorial waters

Sweden has protested to Russia after two warships entered its territorial waters without permission, a defence department spokesman said on Wednesday, as Sweden agreed with two neighbouring countries to deepen…

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‘FinCEN’ leaks show suspect transactions at Swedish bank SEB

About 8.2 billion Swedish crowns ($919 million) in suspicious funds may have flowed through Swedish bank SEB between 2007 and 2016, Swedish Television (SVT) reported on Wednesday. It cited documents…

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Sweden says Stockholm measures possible as COVID cases rise

Sweden, which so far has decided against lockdowns as a means to contain COVID-19, is seeing early signs that the number of coronavirus cases are rising again and could impose…

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Swedish government boosts pandemic-hit economy by $12 bln in 2021 budget

Sweden's government will pump 105 billion crowns ($12 billion) into the economy in 2021 in tax cuts and spending measures in a record give-away aimed at getting the economy back…

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Sweden’s Handelsbanken cuts staff, number of branches

Handelsbanken said on Wednesday it would reduce its number of branches to around 200 from 380 by the end of 2021 and reduce its workforce, affecting around 1,000 employees in…

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Sweden records its fewest daily Covid-19 cases since March

While many European countries are seeing their infection rates surge to levels not seen since the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, Sweden – whose light-touch approach has made it an…

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Swedish 2021 budget to include $1.1 bln in climate measures

Sweden's Social Democrat and Green minority government said on Monday its 2021 budget would contain 9.7 billion Swedish crowns ($1.11 billion) in new spending aimed at fighting climate change. The…

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Positive Covid tests in no-lockdown Sweden hit lowest rate since pandemic began

Sweden carried out a record number of new coronavirus tests last week with only 1.2% coming back positive, the health agency said on Tuesday, the lowest rate since the pandemic…

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Greta Thunberg says Venice documentary shows her real self

A documentary following Greta Thunberg and her journey from Swedish schoolgirl to global climate activist accurately portrays her as a “shy nerd”, the teenager said as the film premiered at…

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UEFA Nations League Roundup (Saturday matches)

Raheem Sterling's late penalty gave England victory as they started their Uefa Nations League campaign in Iceland - despite the hosts squandering the chance to rescue a point by missing…

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Swedes confidence in PM’s handling of coronavirus crisis declining, poll shows

Confidence in the way Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Lofven and his government have handled the coronavirus pandemic has dropped sharply over the last three months, a poll in daily Dagens…

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Face mask sales soar as Swedes expected to make potential guideline change

Sweden is seeing a spike in demand for face masks, several drug stores said, ahead of a possible U-turn by the authorities, who have so far doubted their effectiveness in…

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Riots in Swedish town of Malmo after anti-Islam actions

A riot broke out on Friday night in the southern Swedish town of Malmo, where at least 300 people had gathered to protest against anti-Islam activities, police said. Protesters were…

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Swedish economic sentiment higher for fourth month in row in August

Economic sentiment in Sweden rose for the fourth month in a row, but remains well below normal levels after the novel coronavirus outbreak, a survey from a leading think-tank showed…

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Photo Story: Swedish Armed Forces beefs up presence on Gotland

An armoured vehicle and an aircraft of the Swedish Armed Forces within a 'high readiness action' that was initiated by the Swedish Armed Forces in the Baltic Sea region, in…

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Sweden to ease some COVID-19 curbs on sports, gatherings from October

Sweden plans to ease pandemic rules to allow more spectators at cultural and sporting events, if they can be organised to prevent the risk of spreading the new coronavirus, the…

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Youth unemployment soars in Sweden

Youth unemployment in Sweden hit its highest level this century in July due to the widespread economic disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic and measures to halt its spread, figures…

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Sweden records most deaths in 150 years in first 6 months of 2020

Sweden saw its highest death tally for 150 years in the first six months of 2020, the country's statistics office has announced. Coronavirus had claimed around 4,500 lives in Sweden by…

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New criticism on Sweden’s approach towards Covid-19

Emails showing Sweden's chief epidemiologist asking whether a higher death rate among older people might be acceptable if it led to faster herd immunity, triggered renewed criticism towards the country's…

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Swedish economy to shrink less than feared in 2020

Sweden's economy will shrink less than previously expected this year due to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus and measures to control its spread, a leading think tank said on…

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Swedish inflation stronger than expected in July

Swedish inflation rose more than expected in July, figures from the Statistics Office published on Wednesday showed, though price pressures remain muted by measures to cub the spread of the…

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Photo Story: New Anonymouse shop on streets of Lund, Sweden

A view on mouse-themed miniature Ricotta record shop created by the Swedish artist collective Anonymouse at Nygatan street in Lund, Sweden. The record shop is the latest work by the…

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Record drop in Swedish GDP

Sweden's gross domestic product fell a record 8.6% in the second quarter from the previous quarter and 8.2% from a year earlier, according to a flash estimate from the statistics…

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Photo Story: Knights on patrol in Visby, Sweden

Thomas Lindgren on horse Soprano (L) and Anders Mansson on horse Sara, both from the knight society Tornamenteum, carry flags reading 'Keep distance' and 'Wash your hands often'as he patrols…

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Sweden lifts travel curbs to Norway and Denmark

Sweden will scrap recommendations against travel to four European countries from Thursday, including neighbours Norway and Denmark, amid signs that coronavirus infections are falling. Sweden decided to forego a hard…

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Female priests now outnumber male ones in Church of Sweden

The Church of Sweden has more female than male priests for the first time, according to numbers released this month, a sign of huge strides for gender equality since women…

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Sweden’s strategy to tackle coronavirus triggers new controversy on immunity levels

Sweden's maverick response to the coronavirus has thrown up a new controversy: immunity levels. This week, officials at the Swedish Public Health Agency, which devised the country’s no-lockdown strategy, claimed…

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Photo Story: Scandinavian Airshow pilots in Sweden draw a heart on sky

A heart around the Turning Torso drawn by the pilots of Scandinavian Airshow in Malmo, Sweden, 17 July 2020. Scandinavian Airshow have been drawing hearts in the sky above Swedish…

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Sweden’s confirmed Covid-19 cases cross the 70,000 mark

Sweden’s number of confirmed Covid-19 crossed the 70,000 mark on Thursday, while deaths rose by 41 to 5,411, health agency statistics showed. Sweden recorded 947 new cases to put the…

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Immunity levels to coronavirus ‘higher than antibody tests suggest’, according to Swedish study

More people have got immunity to coronavirus than antibody tests suggest, according to new research from Sweden. Scientists found that those with mild COVID-19 or who didn’t show symptoms still…

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Photo Story: Oresund Bridge celebrates its 20th birthday

People enjoy the sunset and the view of the Oresund Bridge from a viewpoint outside Malmo, Sweden. The bridge, which connects Sweden and Denmark, celebrates its 20th birthday. Via…

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Greece says it will not allow direct flights from UK, Sweden until July 15

Direct flights from Britain and Sweden to Greece will not be allowed until July 15, Greek authorities said, adding that they would use EU guidelines to determine which countries were…

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Photo Story: Social distancing in Sweden

Office colleagues have some after-work drinks next to the water while social distancing from other tables to reduce the risk of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes the pandemic…

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Greta Thunberg criticises the way world leaders behaved after her UN climate change speech in September

Greta Thunberg has voiced her frustration with world leaders who want selfies with her just so they can "look good". The 17-year-old environmental campaigner criticised the behaviour of high-ranking figures…

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Photo story: Hug station for coronavirus times

Lizen Johansson and Josefine Mollerberg at the hug station at The Minc company in Malmoe, Sweden. The hug station was created so that those working at Minc would have the…

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Poll finds Swedes rapidly losing trust in Covid-19 strategy

Swedes are losing trust in authorities’ handling of the coronavirus, as the man behind the country’s light-touch approach called lockdowns a form of madness and political parties demanded the Swedish…

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Photo Story: Toxic algae bloom along Swedish coast

An image taken with a drone shows an aerial view of a bloom of toxic algae on the Baltic Sea coast at Tyreso, south-eastern Sweden. Via EPA-EFE/PONTUS LUNDAHL

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AB Volvo to cut white-collar workforce by 4,100 jobs as pandemic weighs

Truck- and construction equipment maker AB Volvo plans to cut its white-collar workforce by around 4,100 positions during the second half of 2020, it said in a statement, citing the…

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Norwegian Air, SAS to add more flights as demand picks up

Norwegian Air and SAS are adding more flights to their schedules from July onwards as demand begins to recover following the COVID-19 pandemic, the two Nordic carriers announced. SAS will…

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European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control recommends more testing and tracing to control spread

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control recommends that testing efforts are maximised with the aim of offering timely testing to all symptomatic cases, including mild cases. Some of…

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Sweden identifies man who killed PM Olof Palme in 1986

Swedish prosecutors have named the man who they say killed former Swedish prime minister Olof Palme in 1986, ending years of mystery. They identified the suspect as Stig Engstrom,…

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Sweden to present findings on Olof Palme assassination

The findings of an investigation into one of the world’s most infamous cold cases, the 1986 assassination of Swedish prime minister Olof Palme, will finally be made public in Stockholm…

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Healthcare staff in Sweden at risk of mental health issues due to pandemic

Swedish Radio reports that research shows that healthcare staff could be at a high risk of mental health problems caused by the stress of the coronavirus pandemic, and accounts heard…

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Swedish health chief admits Sweden should have done more to avoid coronavirus deaths

Sweden should have done more to combat the coronavirus and prevent a much higher national Covid-19 death rate than in neighbouring countries, the man behind the Public Health Agency’s…

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Scania planning major job cuts

Swedish truckmaker Scania, owned by Germany's Traton, plans major job cuts in the wake of the coronavirus, anticipating it currently has 5,000 more staff globally than needed, it said…

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Antibody study in Sweden shows long road to immunity as COVID-19 toll mounts

A Swedish study found that just 7.3 percent of Stockholmers developed COVID-19 antibodies by late April, which could fuel concern that a decision not to lock down Sweden against the…

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Swedish Central Bank warns financial system stable, but risks if pandemic drags on

Sweden's financial system is stable, but the risks to financial stability will increase the longer the pandemic and the social distancing measures to contain it continue, Sweden's central bank said…

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Unusual earthquake in Sweden

Sweden reported its biggest ever earthquake caused by mining on Monday at an iron ore mine north of the Arctic Circle run by state firm LKAB. The quake measured magnitude…

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Business bankruptcies in Sweden in wake of pandemic slowing

The wave of bankruptcies that has followed in the wake of the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Sweden looks like slowing in May, credit information firm UC said. UC…

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Sweden says coronavirus likely in country in November as death toll approaches 3,000

Sweden's state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell says he would not be surprised if Sweden - like France - had isolated cases of coronavirus as far back as November last year. "I…

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Sweden’s confirmed Covid-19 cases rise above 20,000

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Sweden rose past the 20,000 mark on Wednesday as the Nordic country reported 107 new deaths to put the tally at 2,462…

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Sweden’s method led to far greater number of fatalities than their Nordic neighbours

While countries across the world were going into strict lockdowns, closing businesses and enforcing social distancing, Sweden took a different approach. Unlike some of its Scandinavian neighbours - like Denmark…

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Furloughed staff in Sweden retrain to help hospitals

Furloughed because of the coronavirus pandemic, airline and hotel employees in Sweden are retraining to work as hospital and nursing home assistants as the death toll nears 900 in the…

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Sweden registers ‘increase’ in daily rate of coronavirus deaths

Sweden on Tuesday reported another 114 coronavirus deaths, bringing the total to 591 in a country that has adopted a softer approach to containing the outbreak than some of its…

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Sweden’s pandemic strategy questioned as Stockholm death toll mounts

A spike in novel coronavirus infections and deaths in Stockholm has raised questions about Sweden’s decision to fight the outbreak without resorting to the lockdowns that have left much of…

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Joint statement on the principles of the rule of law in times of Covid-19

Thirteen EU countries on Wednesday issued a joint statement calling for coronavirus emergency measures to be temporary and in line with rule of law principles. The move comes after Hungary’s…

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