COMMERCIAL SUMMARY

Area.-173,394 square miles.

Population.-(31st December, 1937), 6,284,722.

Language. Swedish; English and German are widely used commercially.

National Debt.-28th February, 1939, 2,587 million kronor (about £20 per head of population).

Monetary Unit,—The krona of 100 öre (1S. 1‡d. at par; 1s. old. at 19.40), Sweden left the gold standard on the 28th September, 1931.

Rate of Exchange.-£1 Kr. 18.16 at par.

Kr. 19.40.

=

Since July, 1933, £1 =

Railway Mileage.-State Railways, 4,909 miles, private railways (including narrow gauge), 5,581 miles.

Time. Central European, i.e., one hour ahead of Greenwich mean time, during summer months, Swedish and English times are identical.

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HINTS FOR COMMERCIAL VISITORS

Language.-English is spoken by members of most business firms in Sweden, and as a rule, intending visitors need not anticipate difficulties on account of language.

Times for Visits.—In general the buying seasons coincide with those in England. The best times of the year for visiting Sweden are the spring and autumn. The period from the 1st June to the 15th August is not suitable, as Swedish business men then spend little time in town and are difficult to meet. Christmas disturbs wholesale business in many ways, and the holiday period at the close of the year lasts for nearly a fortnight. During most of the year the temperature is a little lower than in England, but in winter it is considerably colder. Central heating is general, and heavy underwear often inconvenient, but a really warm overcoat is desirable in the autumn, winter and spring.

New Year's Day, Epiphany (6th January), Lady Day (25th March), Good Friday until Easter Monday, Ascension Day, May Day (1st May), Whit Monday, Midsummer Day (24th June), Christmas Day, Boxing Day.

On Saturdays offices usually close early, and in the summer months heads of firms are often out of town for the whole day. On other days the lunch interval is usually 12 to 1 or 1 to 2.

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Time. Swedish time is Central European time, i.e., when it is noon in Sweden it is II o'clock in the United Kingdom. When, however, summer time" is in force in the United Kingdom, the time in both countries is the same, as there is no summer time" arrangement in Sweden. Routes. The routes most used for the journey from England to Sweden

are:

(a) The direct sea route of the Swedish Lloyd Line. These steamers leave London (Tilbury) for Gothenburg (35 hours) twice a week with additional sailings in the summer. The first-class fares London-Gothenburg are from £6 15s., the third-class £4 14s., including food. For return tickets, £12 for first-class and £8 10s. for third-class. During the summer months the Swedish Lloyds also maintain a supplementary service Harwich-Gothenburg leaving Liverpool Street at 4.13 p.m. and arriving Gothenburg II a.m. (Central European time) the third day. Single fare first-class from £6. Gothenburg with a population of 275,000 is the second largest city of Sweden, the chief centre in the south-west of the country, and the main port of communication with the North Sea and Atlantic. Stockholm, the capital (population 571,000) lies to the north-east, six hours by rail.

(b) The short sea route from Harwich to Flushing or Hook of Holland (45 hours). From the latter ports there are through carriages to Hamburg or Berlin, and thence, to Stockholm and certain other towns in Sweden; the Baltic is crossed by the railway ferry between Sassnitz and Trälleborg. The single fares are about £12 first-class and £8 second-class.

(c) Via Harwich-Esbjerg-Copenhagen. Every week-day (Sundays in summer) leaving London (Liverpool Street) at 4.10 p.m. reaching Stockholm in about 55 hours. The single fares London-Stockholm are between £4 10s. and £7 10s., according to class.

(d) Throughout the year there are several air services daily from London via Amsterdam-Copenhagen-Hamburg and Malmö to Stockholm, by United Kingdom, Swedish and Dutch lines. The journey to Stockholm takes about seven hours and costs £17 15s. single and £31 19s. return.

Malmö is the third city of Sweden, is the centre of a comparatively rich agricultural district, and has a population of 151,000. The journey from Malmö to Stockholm takes about 8 hours by rail and 2 hours by air.

Economy and convenience often make it desirable that the other Scandinavian and possibly Baltic countries should be visited on the same trip. For instance Oslo lies seven hours by rail north of Gothenburg, and can be reached also by steamer from Newcastle to Bergen, thence by rail. Copenhagen also lies on the route to Sweden via Esbjerg. Helsingfors, the capital of Finland, is 24 hours by air and 22 hours by steamer from Stockholm, the sea journey usually being quite comfortable. Hamburg, Danzig, Riga, and Tallinn, can all be conveniently included in the trip if desired.

Towns to visit.-In Sweden itself the most important centres of population are Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö, the next largest town having a population of 68,000. North of Stockholm there are few towns of importance, Gävle (40,000) and Uppsala (37,000) being the largest, but there is a string of ports along the coast, concerned mainly with timber and pulp, of which Sundsvall (18,500) is the largest. the south of Stockholm is Norrköping (68,000), one of the two centres of the textile industry, the other being Borås (46,000), near Gothenburg. Other important industrial centres are Orebro, for footwear, and Eskilstuna, the "Sheffield " of Sweden. North of Malmö is Hälsingborg, a fairly important industrial centre, with a population of 61,000.

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Internal Communications.-The internal communications in Sweden, mainly by rail but also by bus, are in general excellent. Railway fares are not dear, the journey from Gothenburg to Stockholm costs Kr.29.25 second-class, Gothenburg to Malmö Kr.22.05, Malmö to Stockholm Kr.32.40. Second-class is generally used, in fact, first-class accommodation is rarely provided except on night trains, when a first-class ticket (double the second-class fare) entitles the holder to the whole of a sleeping compartment, second-class passengers are accommodated on two-berth compartments, and third-class passengers in three-berth compartments. charges for sleeping accommodation, in addition to the ordinary fares, are Kr.20 first-class, Kr. 10 second, and Kr.5 third. No charge is made for reservation other than the 'seat ticket " or platsbiljett, which costs Kr.0.25. Twenty-five kilogs of luggage are carried free, a nominal charge of 50 öre (say 6d.) being made for a registered luggage ticket (poletteringsbiljett).

The

Taxis are cheap and widely used; a 10 per cent. tip on the registered fare is ample.

Railway Fares.-Samples.-Distances in Sweden being considerable, much travelling in the country becomes expensive. Commercial travellers can, by making application to any Chamber of Commerce in Sweden obtain at a cost of Kr. 10 a card entitling the holder to a 50 per cent. rebate on excess luggage charges (over 25 kilogs) during one calendar year.

Samples without value are duty free; duty paid on samples is refunded on re-export within six months provided certain formalities are complied with when the samples pass through customs on coming into the country.

Post. The letter rate from Sweden is 30 öre (for the first 20 grammes), postcards 20 öre. Considerable time can be saved by the use of the air mail. The extra charge on a letter from Sweden is 10 öre.

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Parcels may be dispatched twice weekly, via Gothenburg, but, if urgent, "via Denmark,' parcels from the United Kingdom should be marked these pay a slightly higher rate, but there is a daily despatch. There is also an air mail parcel service.

Telegrams. The charge for messages to the United Kingdom is 26 öre a word.

Telephones.-The day charge (from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.) for a threeminute conversation between London and Stockholm or Gothenburg is 14s. 6d. (from Sweden Kr.15.90), at night 8s. 9d. (from Sweden Kr.9.60). The telephone is more generally used in Sweden than in the United Kingdom, and to a far greater extent replaces letter writing.

In

Hotel Expenses.-The average daily cost of subsistence at the hotels in the large towns, which can be recommended, is fairly high. Stockholm and Gothenburg a traveller must expect to pay from 25 to 30s. a day, viz. Kr.10 to 15 for room, breakfast Kr.2.50, lunch Kr.5.00, dinner Kr.8.00 to Kr.10 plus tips and extras. The cost of extra services, e.g., laundry and hairdressing, is at least 50 per cent. more than in London. Particulars regarding hotels are readily obtainable from the Swedish Travel Bureau and the tourist offices.

Tipping. In general this is at the rate of about 15 per cent. on the bill in restaurants, taxicabs, etc., but in some hotels there is a so-called normal tariff in respect of service fees wherein tips, for instance, on a bill for a stay of one or two nights, are put at a higher rate.

Entertainment.-Entertainment in Sweden is of importance in connection with business, and it may be taken that under this heading one person for lunch will cost about Kr.15 and for dinner about Kr.15 to Kr.20, including wine.

Commercial Traveller's Licence.-Foreigners in Sweden who visit firms or individuals with the object of selling goods must take a licence (handelspass) before making any calls on potential customers.

The fees are Kr.35 for 15 days, Kr.70 for 30 days, and Kr. 100 for 45 days. This licence only covers sales of goods for later delivery from abroad. Representatives visiting Sweden in order to appoint agents need not take out a licence so long as they do not endeavour to take orders.

REPORT ON ECONOMIC AND COMMERCIAL

CONDITIONS IN SWEDEN.

April, 1939.

I. INTRODUCTION.

The steady improvement in economic conditions in Sweden, which dates back to the year 1934, culminated in a trade boom in 1937 when the general index of wholesale prices rose from 132.5 in January to a peak figure of 146.8 in September (the year 1936=100). In anticipation of a continuance of the favourable conditions then prevailing and of a shortage of supplies importers and merchants covered their requirements for some months ahead. There was, indeed, a good deal of overbuying, so much so that when towards the end of the year the cost of raw materials began to fall, large quantities of general merchandise were held in stock or on order. As the volume of new business diminished prices fell, and in the earlier months of 1938 it looked as if a new cycle of trade depression had begun. The position was not improved by somewhat alarming reports to the effect that the stock of orders in the iron and steel trade was gradually being depleted, and that new orders were so hard to obtain that it might be necessary to lay off skilled workers; that the pulp industry, which had sold forward most of the 1938 production of mechanical and chemical pulp at profitable prices, was experiencing some difficulty in coming to terms with foreign buyers who wished to defer deliveries or cancel their contracts; that the European Timber Exporters Convention (E.T.E.C.) had agreed to reduce further the maximum permissible export quotas; and that even the well-established newsprint, kraft and other paper manufacturers were curtailing their output. Thus in May-June, 1938, the general trade outlook gave some cause for alarm, and merchants and manufacturers alike studied reports from the U.S.A. with interest and anxiety, as a general revival of international trade appeared to depend very largely on a swift return to prosperity in that country. The general public were perhaps more concerned with the heavy clouds gathering in Europe, and all in Sweden watched with considerable anxiety the political happenings centred in Czechoslovakia. In July and August wholesale trade was virtually at a standstill, as, although plenty of business would have been offering if the political outlook had been clearer, the nervous tension then prevailing caused merchants and retailers to defer their purchases and withdraw to their summer homes.

In the meantime, there had been no abatement in the spending power of the Swedish people, in fact they spent more freely than ever before, and retail trade flourished accordingly. In July it