Sweden: Aneconomyon the cuspof change
Theperfect
mixture
T
heworld imageof Sweden isdue innosmall
measure to theadvertisingof an internationally
well-known furnituresupplier. TheSwedesare
representedas industrious, patient and invent
ive, but also cheerful and fun-loving.One clear sign
of theSwedes’ zest for life is the“Mitsommer-Fest”,
a celebrationwhosedatewasdefinedby law in1952
asbeingona Fridaybetween20thand26th June. The
Swedes’ relaxedandoptimisticattitude to life is inno
small part due to the fact that they live inandwitha
natural environmentwhichasksmuchof themandgives
muchback in return. This results inastrongsenseof
communityandanability to co-operatewithothers.
Both thesevalueshaveplayedamajor part inshaping
Swedishsocietyand continue todoso today.
Space, freedom, beauty
This communityspirit unites thepeopleof this large
country in thenorthof Europeandhasmade it econom
icallysuccessful. Aroundnineandahalfmillion inhabit-
antsarespreadover anareaofmore than450,000
squarekilometres. Thismeansapopulationdensity
onlyapproximatelyone tenth that ofGermany. Sweden
isa long country. Thegreatest north-southdistance
within the country is1,572km,while theeast-west
figure is just under 500km. If Swedenwere turned
at itssouthernmost point towards theequator, then it
would reachdown toRome. And there isone thing
whichonlya few foreignersknow–Sweden isa country
of islands, approximately221,800of them.Most are
skerries,which range froma fewsquaremetres to
several squarekilometres. This iswheremanySwedes
spend their spare time in thepicturesquehousespainted
in Falun red.Where thereare islands, there isof course
alsoa lot ofwater. Sweden’s charms includenot only
3,218kmof coastlinebut alsoaround100,000 lakes,
whichshine like jewels in the landscape. TheSwedes’
close relationshipwithnature isexpressedparticularly
clearly in theso-called“Allemansrätten”, a traditional
lawwhichallowsSwedes tomove freely throughout
the country, evenonprivatelyowned land–although
this right doesn’t extend to theuseofmotor vehicles.
Emotion, excitement andsport
Themost famousSwedishexportsare from theenter-
tainment industry,withsuchworld-famousnamesas
ABBA, Roxette, Aceof BaseandTheCardigans. In the
fieldof literature, Swedishdetectivefilmshavenow
developedalmost intoagenreof theirownandare regu
larly foundhighonbest-seller lists. Evenmore famous
is the character “Pippi Longstocking” createdby the
SwedishwriterAstridLindgren (1907-2002).Her books
havebeen translated into50 languagesandarestill
favouriteswith children, evenafter over 65years.
Sweden isalsoaverysporty country. Sportsmensuch
as Ingemar StenmarkandBjörnBorgare legends. Foot-
ball star Zlatan Ibrahimović isamong thebest strikers
in theworldandwas recentlyvoted themost popular
sportsman in the country for thefifthyear insuccession.
Agriculture, industry, services
In termsof economic structure, Swedenhassince the
secondhalf of the19th centurymade the fundamental
change fromanagrarianstate toan industrial nation.
While the initial successof Swedish industrialisation
wasdue togoodaccess to rawmaterialssuchas iron
oreandwoodand toprocessing them locally, asuc
cessfulworkshop industrywith its focal point in central
Swedenbegan toemerge in the1890s. Thebest-known
representativesof thisareNobel, ABB, Bofors, Ericsson,
AlfaLaval andSKF. Until the1970s, the industrial
Forests,mountains, lakes, rivers–
Sweden leaves its inhabitants
plentyof room tounwind. The countrywith theblueandyellow
flag isalsoapopular destination for nature-lovingholiday-makers.
Theserviceand industrial sectorscanalsobedescribedasahealthy
mix. Among themost important industrysectorsand customersof
theSwedishnational Festocompany,which iscelebrating its50th
anniversary thisyear, are the foodandbeverage industry, theauto-
motive industryand the timber industry.
1.2014
trends inautomation
Synergies
20
–
21
